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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/27675115">An Impossible Choice</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/Rosemary_and_Time/pseuds/Rosemary_and_Time'>Rosemary_and_Time</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>Winding Roads (SMP AU) [2]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Minecraft (Video Game), Video Blogging RPF</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Angst, Badboyhalo is a good muffin, Best Friends, Dadza, Dadza protect the kids, Dave | Technoblade and Wilbur Soot and TommyInnit are Siblings, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Emotional Manipulation, Emotional/Psychological Abuse, Everyone Needs A Hug, Festival and beyond, Festival arc and beyond, Fluff and Angst, Gen, Hurt/Comfort, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, Insane Wilbur Soot, It's all about the characters, Painful respawns, Reluctant Technoblade, Respawning has consequences, Threats of Violence, Toby Smith | Tubbo &amp; TommyInnit Friendship, TommyInnit Swears (Video Blogging RPF), Villain Jschlatt (Video Blogging RPF)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-11-22</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-12-07</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-07 00:09:10</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Not Rated</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Graphic Depictions Of Violence</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>12</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>42,911</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/27675115</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/Rosemary_and_Time/pseuds/Rosemary_and_Time</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Techno didn’t want to kill Tubbo, but he didn’t exactly have many options.  Especially not once Schlatt gave him an ultimatum.  The festival and it’s aftermath with a twist.  </p><p>Starts at the Festival and cannon divergence from there.  </p><p>Wilbur is far gone.  Tommy and Tubbo are traumatized.  Someone needs to step in.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Darryl Noveschosch &amp; TommyInnit, Dave | Technoblade &amp; Toby Smith | Tubbo &amp; Wilbur Soot &amp; TommyInnit &amp; Phil Watson, Dave | Technoblade &amp; Wilbur Soot, Lots of platonic affection - Relationship, Niki | Nihachu &amp; Darryl Noveschosch, Niki | Nihachu &amp; Phil Watson, Niki | Nihachu &amp; Toby Smith | Tubbo &amp; TommyInnit, Niki | Nihachu &amp; Wilbur Soot, Sleepy boys inc. are an adoptive family, Toby Smith | Tubbo &amp; TommyInnit, Toby Smith | Tubbo &amp; TommyInnit &amp; Phil Watson, Toby Smith | Tubbo &amp; Wilbur Soot &amp; TommyInnit, TommyInnit &amp; Phil Watson (Video Blogging RPF), Zak Ahmed &amp; Darryl Noveschosch, Zak Ahmed &amp; Darryl Noveschosch &amp; Toby Smith | Tubbo, no romantic relationships!</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>Winding Roads (SMP AU) [2]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/series/2049288</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>280</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>1125</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>1. Welcome to the Festival</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Hey all!  Not much to say for this first chapter.<br/>This is going to be one of the shortest chapters, the next one should be up soon.   </p><p>TW: Mild violence.  Threats of violence.  Very, very vague threats of torture.  Anxiety and stress.  Blood</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Techno felt his heart begin to beat harder the moment Schlatt started laughing.  The way Schatt cackled was nothing short of sinister, a warning. </p><p>“You got anything else in that speech big guy?”</p><p>“Uh, no” Tubbo stammered, confusion written across his face “On that note let the festival begin”</p><p>Techno tensed as Schlatt continued to chuckle while walking slowly over to Tubbo on the stage, stopping behind the small boy and tightly gripping his shoulder. </p><p>“What are you, what are you doing Schlatt?” Tubbo looked back towards Schlatt questioning the taller man in a quiet voice. </p><p>Schlatt ignored him completely.  The only indication he could even hear Tubbo speaking was the way his grip tightened on his shoulder.  He was holding Tubbo hard enough that even from the audience Techno could see the teen visibly flinch from the pain. </p><p>“Quackity, my vice president, behind my throne here there’s a switch, you can’t miss it.  Go ahead and flick that switch for me, would you?” Schlatt’s tone left no room for argument.  This wasn’t a request.</p><p>“Of, of course Schlatt” Quackity looked confused but obediently vanished behind the large blackstone throne. </p><p>Techno had instincts hard fought for over many battles and wars, and those instincts were screaming at him now.  He was already looking around, scoping out possible escapes, and sizing up the preparedness of those around him for a fight.  A loud grating sound drew his attention back up to the podium in an instant.  As Quackity presumably flipped the mentioned switch, thick yellow concrete walls rose on both sides of the throne, fitting together neatly.  The backrest of the throne effectively became the back of a box, with hard concrete sides.  No, a cage.  Techno dialed in on the iron bars, ready to swing shut across the front.  This was a cage and…</p><p>“Tubbo, Tubbo I’ll cut to the chase alright.” Schlatts voice, which had previously been congenial if sinister, suddenly hardened.  Techno saw Tubbo trying to glance behind him, to see the source of the noise, but he couldn’t get a look with Schlatt gripping his shoulders. </p><p>A pause “Tubbo, I know what you’ve been up to” Monotone.  Serious.  Deadly. </p><p>Techno recognized the first real traces of fear pass over Tubbo, but they were quickly hidden away.  Techno couldn’t help but feel a moment of pride for the boy when Tubbo looked up at Schlatt, face innocent and clear.</p><p>“What have I been up to?  What are you talking about?”</p><p>The moment of hope that Tubbo would be able to talk his way out of this, lie like he had done so many times before, narrowly avoiding being found out, was dashed instantly. </p><p>Schlatt laughed uproariously as if, Tubbo’s declaration of innocence was the funniest thing he had ever heard.  He took a step to the side, going so far as to bend and slap his leg in mock amusement, though one hand never loosened its vice like grip on Tubbo’s shoulder.  Schlatt’s playacting more than anything else told Techno that no amount of lying would get Tubbo out of this one.  Techno felt heat rise in his chest; all this nonsense was intended for the audience.  This wasn’t a fight or even the true outing of a traitor, this was a performance. </p><p>“what have I been up to he says” Schlatt repeated mockingly.  Techno saw Tubbo finally get a look at the cage behind him, instinctively trying to step sideways, away from Schlatts painful grip.  In an instant Schlatt wasn’t laughing, he spun around facing Tubbo.  When he next spoke his voice was deadly, slow and dark “what have I been up to.”</p><p>Techno was focused, every muscle in his body tense.  His hands unconsciously ran over his pouches of potions, the handle of his sword, and the grip of his crossbow. </p><p>“Let him go Schlatt” a clear voice rang out beside him.  The first person in the audience to speak beyond a hushed whisper or gasp since this whole thing had begun.  Techno glanced over, seeing Niki standing from her seat.  It was a bold move, and others in the audience began to grumble a little louder. </p><p>If Schlatt noticed, he didn’t react.  He simply leaned forward towards Tubbo, paused for a moment, then pushed him backwards, hard.  Tubbo was knocked off balance and stumbled, hitting his back against the stone rear of the cage.  Tubbo didn’t hesitate in pushing himself to his feet and charging for the one entrance to the box, but Schlatt was quicker.  The metal gate slammed shut in front of him with a resounding click.  He was trapped. </p><p>Schlatt turned to face the audience, dramatically sidestepping so everyone could see the boy caged in front of them.  Techno noted him adjusting his microphone before he turned, addressing Tubbo and the crowd.  The motion was small, but it spoke volumes, this was premeditated.  Already several potential plans had been evaluated and thrown out.  Schlatt and his people were prepared.</p><p>The ram horned man raised his voice, practically shouting now “Tubbo, I don't know if you know this, but treason isn't exactly, uh... isn't exactly a respectable thing around here.  I know what you've been doing, IT ALL ADDS UP, BUDDY!  The fucking TUNNELS, your ABSENCE from great events, I mean, you walked off in the middle of this one!”</p><p>Techno vaguely heard Tubbo continue to protest, almost pleading with Schlatt.  He knew he would be ignored.  Glancing around, Techno evaluated how dire this situation was.  Schlatt had at least three heavily armed people present, two of them carefully seated in the audience on either side of techno, one seated behind him, enchanted netherite armor gleaming in the evening sun.  After all, Techno was known to be allied with Pogtopia, he had assumed only a technicality allowed him to be invited to this event at all.  Wilbur had been all for his attendance though, a golden opportunity to gather information.  Techno refused to even glance at the building to his left, where he knew Tommy and Wilbur were hiding, waiting for something unknown.  But Wilbur wasn’t much of a fighter, and Tommy didn’t have the gear.  If this broke out into fighting it would be him against almost the entirety of Manburg, and Techno was wise enough to not like those odds. </p><p>“Technoblade, you wanna come up here for a second?” the sound of his name pulled Technoblade out of his focused scrutiny.  The president raised his hand up invitationally, gesturing to the stage behind him.  Techno heard Punz shift in his armor and hesitantly stood.  This was out of his comfort zone.  He almost wished someone would just attack him, at least then he could know what to do.  He glanced around one more time before slowly climbing up to the podium.  “Come right up here Technoblade” Schlatt inclined his head towards a platform, extending in front of the cage.  As Techno stepped onto it, he briefly met Tubbo’s eyes.  The 16-year-old brunette looked back from over top of the iron fence.  In that brief glimpse Techno recognized underlying fear, but also a spark of relief.  Tubbo looked at him hopefully.  Ever since Techno had joined to server to support his brothers in their exile, Tubbo had been a constant presence.  Nearby whenever he could escape from Schlatt.  Clingy as Tommy would say, but welcome.  When Techno was building the new potato farm Tubbo set up a watering system alongside him, chattering constantly.  Recently the boy looked more and more worn out.  Even Techno with his interpersonal issues could see that the stress of being a spy was weighing on him. </p><p>Techno breathed deeply as he turned to look at Schlatt, briefly grateful that this would mean Tubbo wouldn’t have to sneak around anymore.  As bad as this situation was, he was glad Tommy would get to be with his best friend again. </p><p>Schlatt was rambling on about Tubbo being a traitor to the state, this was old news to Techno.  He was becoming increasingly suspicious about why he had been called up here.  Maybe they were going to throw him out with Tubbo?  Exile him with his brothers?  Techno had to refrain from chuckling at the thought, he already practically lived in their little canyon, what more could Schlatt do?</p><p>“Technoblade please, if you would, if you would be so kind… Take care of this traitor” At this innocuous phrase, spoken with sickeningly sweet dulcet tones, Technoblade’s blood ran cold. </p><p>“What do you mean?” he stuttered out, his gaze frantically glancing around, barely managing to keep his voice level.  He knew what it meant though, all the pieces fell into place in an instant, and Techno felt real fear for the first time in a long while.  It’s okay, Wilbur will know what to do, he thought, trying to calm himself.  Techno was aware of his limitations, this was a crazy social situation, he could feel the eyes of the audience bore into his back.  He wasn’t good at these, he didn’t know what to do, but Wilbur would.  Techno glanced down at this wrist checking for any messages on his communicator, anything at all.  He silently pleaded for Wilbur to give him something to go off of here, while speaking some nonsense to the president aloud.  Stalling, sure that if he can just give Wilbur time, he would tell him what to do.  He looks at Tubbo, still standing near the middle of his makeshift cell, one hand touching the metal railing keeping him trapped.  Techno made a concerted effort to soften his features, to give Tubbo some reassurance. </p><p>“Technoblade, uh, we’re running on a tight schedule here.” The leader intoned “Techno why don’t you step to the side with me for a moment, since you’re obviously having so much trouble understanding what I’m asking.”  The man jerked his head to the side, adjusting the collar of his fitted suit before turning and waiting for Techno to follow. </p><p>Obediently he stepped off the platform in front of the garishly colored box and followed Schlatt to the side, out of range of the mics.  Techno kept an eye on the box in his periphery just to make sure nothing unexpected happened to Tubbo while he was distracted. </p><p>“Listen Technoblade, the way I see it you’ve got a choice here, two options cut and dry.”  Schlatt spoke up conversationally.  “You can either execute that traitor on the spot, or refuse.  The choice is up to you.”</p><p>“Why would I execute him Schlatt?” He spoke dryly, monotone as always.  He was afraid.  The ram hybrid had a gleam in his eyes, Techno knew there was more to it, he desperately just wanted him to spit it out.  Let him get off this stage, away from all this noise.  The crowd was murmuring louder now, several voices calling out in displeasure.  Techno could recognize Niki's voice, still pleading for Tubbo’s release, and Fundy, joining her in shouting up to the podium.  “Tell me the catch Schlatt.”</p><p>“Sure, Techno sure, I’ll cut right to the heart of the matter.  You’re a man of action, of strategy, you should appreciate what I’ve done here.  Option one you kill him.  I get my big political statement and we all go our separate ways.  Sure, it’ll hurt him, but he’ll respawn, presumably wherever you and those scum have been hiding out.”  There was more to it than that.  They both knew this, they had both died and respawned before and it wasn’t the walk in the park Schlatt was making it out to be.  Sure, you would wake back up, but only after what felt like an eternity, stuck with all the pain of whatever injuries you had when you died, repeating your death over and over again, but with the feelings and the pain amplified tenfold.  You also wouldn’t be unscathed.  Techno’s scar covered body spoke to his many experiences with death.  So long as you were alive any injury could heal without scars, without any permanent effects at all.  No matter how severe the injury, so long as you lived, you could fully heal.  Injuries inflicted before death were different.  Anything fatal would be fixed when you awoke, but more delicate tissues could remain damaged.  Any injuries you had at the moment of your death would scar, whether or not they were the fatal blow.  All this flew through Techno’s mind in an instant, heat once again rising as he thought about Tubbo experiencing that.  He knew Tubbo had died before, but he couldn’t imagine inflicting that on him.  After all, he still thought of Tommy as a kid, his kid brother, and the same extended to Tubbo. </p><p>Techno gritted his teeth, not trying to hide his anger “and option two?”</p><p>“Option two, you don’t kill him, you walk away or start a fight, really anything I don’t like.  I would have a change of heart, oh how could I execute my right hand, who is practically a child.”  Schlatts tone changed dramatically during his last phrase, filled with sadness and regret.  Almost believable.  Almost.  “I decide to imprison him instead, force him to set his spawn in some dungeon somewhere, you know the type.  After that well…” his tone darkened menacingly “I really am unhappy with how I’ve been betrayed here Technoblade.  There is a lot you can do to someone before a death message will alert the people at large.  Even then, people fight against the guards, do dangerous things.  Accidents happen.  Unavoidable.” </p><p>Halfway through the little monologue Techno caught the message.  The little heat from earlier turned to blood boiling anger.  He was furious.  How dare he threaten, or even think about doing that to Tubbo.  Techno wanted nothing more in the world than to strike Schlatt down where he stood, murderous bloodlust rose in him and he reached down touching his sword—</p><p>“uh uh uh I would think about that if I were you” Schlatt calmly remarked.  As if he were a parent suggesting their child was running too fast down the stairs, not a man who Techno desperately wanted to see bleed out in front of him.  But Techno did take a moment to glance around, in his anger he had missed a couple of things.  Namely the three heavily armored guards making their move up towards the stage.  One, Punz, now stood between him and the cage where Tubbo was being held.  A second, Purpled, hovered near Quackity at the front of the platform, close to the gate.  Finally, Ponk, stood off to his left near the edge of the stage.  All three were watching him with a steady gaze.  Techno, with the mind of a long-time tactician, saw what was happening.  If he killed Schlatt, Punz and Ponk would be on him in a moment.  He could take them, he knew it, but there was no way he could do it fast enough to get to Tubbo before Quackity and Purpled had whisked him away.  Even if he turned and attacked Punz first, Ponk would be behind him, forcing him to turn away from Tubbo.  Schlatt was right about one thing.  It was a tactician’s dream.  Techno checked his communicator, no new messages.</p><p>“Alright Technoblade, now that we understand each other, you’ve got two minutes.  If the traitor isn’t dead by then I’ll take that as your choice and have my change of heart.  And Techno” The horned man leaned in conspiratorially “I do hope you pick option two, more fun for me that way, getting to, heh, spend more time with little Tubbster.  Your time starts now.”</p><p> </p><p>
  <strong>======================================================================================</strong>
</p><p> </p><p>Techno’s head buzzed as he walked back towards the front of the podium, towards the brightly colored cage.  There was so much noise, he didn’t know what to do, he didn’t have time.  Schlatt addressed the audience even though his words were directed at Techno. </p><p>“I want you to KILL HIM!  RIGHT NOW!! ON THIS FUCKING STAGE!!! AND MAKE IT HURT!!!!”</p><p>Techno checked his communicator, he looked at Tubbo, the boy stood in the center staring back at him with wide eyes, shaking slightly, but resolute.  No new messages.  Techno knew that there were fates worse than death, but how do you make that choice for someone else?  He glanced down, no new messages.  He heard voices shouting behind him, telling him he had a choice, that he didn’t need to do this.  He also heard voices shouting for the traitor to be killed.  It was all so loud.  No new messages.  Techno focused his gaze back on Tubbo, he remembered the sadistic glee in Schlatts eyes, he couldn’t, he couldn’t let that happen.  He couldn’t let Schlatt get his way.  If death was quick, he knew from experience it was bearable.  It wasn’t good, but… it was better than Schlatts alternative. </p><p>“One-minute warning Technoblade” Schlatt’s low voice pierced through the noise beside him, grinning through bared teeth.  Techno stepped close to the cage, his hand rubbing the hilt of his sword.  The gate stood about stomach height, almost chest height on Tubbo.  Low enough.  But not low enough to get out of, built with vertical bars.  Techno knew his sword was sharp, ready, he could do this, one motion.  It would be quick.  He checked his wrist.  No new messages. </p><p>“Tubbo come up here” He spoke evenly, calling the boy closer to him.  He needed him to be close to the gate.  For a moment he considered if he could break the gate and run off with him.  Quick glances to either side proved that impossible.  He was ringed in by strong opponents.  There was no way he could get both of them out, and while he was fighting, they could grab Tubbo and…</p><p>Tubbo stepped up to the gate, close as he could get without leaning against it.  He looked up at the warrior “Technoblade?” his voice was unsteady and questioning.  But when Techno looked down and met his eyes, he saw a trusting gaze meet his own.  He had to do this.  No new messages.  In an instant Techno had drawn and raised his sword.  One quick cut, he envisioned it in his mind, it would be precise and… the warrior hesitated.  It was just an instant, a moment of weakness.  He looked down and met Tubbo’s trusting eyes, watched them turn to fear.  That was his mistake.  He was too slow.  Tubbo may have been young but he had been in a war himself, he was fast to react.  In that instant of hesitation Tubbo threw himself backwards, pulling up his right arm to protect himself.  When Techno swung his sword that was all he hit.  He scored a gash through the boys’ arm which instantly started flowing blood.  Tubbo retreated until his back was pressed against the wall, gasping in pain and fear. </p><p>“What the hell?”  the voice was quiet and quaking, almost a sob.  Techno heard all the betrayal in the boy’s voice, and it hit him like a punch to the gut.  He took a step back.</p><p>“Ooooh look at that he’s softening him up!” Schlatts voice rang out delighted beside him, then lowered.  “Thirty seconds Technoblade, you’d better make your choice.”</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Hope you enjoyed this first chapter! I've got over 50 pages and 28k words written out for this fic, but I wanted to make sure it all flowed nicely before I started posting. If you have a suggestion for what my update schedule should be like, I'd love to hear it.<br/>Like I said, this is one of the shortest chapters I have planned, so be prepared for much, much more.</p><p>Fair warning, things get worse before they get better. Without giving away anything, I can say that several future chapters are going to have intense instances of panic attacks. So if that's harmful for you to read, I would recommend you stop here.</p><p>I really do hope you enjoyed this, it's been a passion project of mine for a couple weeks now, and I decided it was finally time to share it.<br/>--R&amp;T</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0002"><h2>2. Decisions have consequences</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Technoblade makes his choice.  Chaos erupts.  Blood for the blood god.</p>
          </blockquote><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Second chapter, stuff goes down.  </p><p>TW: Violence, anxiety.  Panic attack depicted.  Description of burns, scars, and injuries.</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>It was too loud.  Everyone was yelling, a wave of noise that beat against his back and dulled his senses.  Techno sheathed his sword, trying to ignore the blood that stained the blade.  Tubbo’s blood.  He pulled out his crossbow, he didn’t want to use it, but… he checked his communicator on his wrist.  No new messages.  He doesn’t have time for a plan, he doesn’t have time.  Wilbur has left him out to dry.  He looks down ready to load the crossbow, only to jolt.  He doesn’t have any arrows.  All he has are fireworks, festival rockets to be shot in celebration.  He glances up, trying not to spend too long looking at Tubbo, the boy leaning heavily against the back wall, gripping his injured arm tightly.  There is no way he can reach him with his sword, and the boy isn’t going to come closer a second time.  Techno turns glancing at the guard closest to him.</p><p>“Give me an arrow” he practically growls at Punz, the man instinctively reaches into his quiver, only to be stopped by Schlatts hand interceding. </p><p>“Now Technoblade, I think those rockets you have should do just fine for this, don’t you think?  They sure looked powerful earlier.  And what a better use for the festival rockets then a celebratory execution of the worst traitor our nation has ever seen!!” Schlatt shouted, hyping up the crowd, or at least techno could only assume, it was all just noise.  So much noise.  He glanced, barely able to hope.  No new messages.  “Ten seconds Technoblade” Schlatts voice was firm. </p><p>Techno loaded a rocket, then two more.  The bow was multishot and the action was a combination of muscle memory and pure spite.  If Tubbo was going to die, then he was going to insure he didn’t do so alone.  He kept mental count.  Five seconds.  He raised the crossbow, aiming center mass, briefly looking up, trying to meet Tubbo’s eyes.  To provide any reassurance.  Tubbo’s blue eyes were wide, filled with unshed tears and betrayal.  He moved even closer to the wall, instinctively trying to make himself smaller.  Three seconds.  Techno met his eyes, trying to hold steady.</p><p>“Tubbo… Tubbo I’m sorry.  I’ll make this as painless as possible” one second.  He took a breath, pulled the trigger, and everything erupted in chaos. </p><p> </p><p>
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</p><p> </p><p>The explosions were loud, bright, and colorful beyond belief.  Techno was briefly deafened by the noise, all he could think was that the muffled ringing was a relief, a brief respite from all the voices.  The smoke started to clear, and Techno’s brain filled with the patterns of fighting.  He started to assess the situation.  The three armored guards had been tossed off the stage by the blast, he was certain they were only mildly injured, but it kept them out of his way for the moment.  Schlatt laid in a puddle of his own blood on the left of the stage, looks like he hit a beam there rather than flying off.  Even from here Techno could see a large crack running the length of his curved horn.  Good.  That wouldn’t be going away with respawn.  Quackity was on the right, off the side of the podium.  His body flickered out of existence almost as soon as Techno laid eyes on it.  A faster death then he deserved he thought grimly.  He turned, his heart dropping as he steeled himself to check inside the box, now covered in cracks, dust and grime, the bright yellow faded as if weathered for years in a single moment.  He hoped beyond hope that Tubbo would already be gone, in respawn, but before he could check he heard shouting from below.  Punz was below the stage, and was on his feet, getting ready to charge back up.  Then several things happened in a single instant.</p><p>Techno heard a desperate voice shout and the crack of an enderpearl hitting the stage.</p><p>“TUBBO!” the voice shouted again as soon as his feet landed unsteadily on the stage, Techno easily recognized the voice, but he had never heard his brother so devastated, so unbelievably torn apart by rage and grief.  He paused, almost not pulling his sword out in time to block the blow that followed.  Tommy swung desperately at Technoblade, no care to his blows, just anger in the form of a swinging sword.  After the initial bewilderment Techno blocked them easily, but Tommy stopped fighting just as quickly as he had begun.  Turning away from his brother to rush at the metal gate of the cage, desperately smashing it with his sword, busting it down. </p><p>“Tubbo!” this time the shout was more of a wail.  Techno’s heart sank, but people were shouting below.  He needed to protect his brother.  He reloaded the crossbow with rockets, the people were running around, shouting and grouping up.  The guards were readying themselves to charge the stage.  He fired at them first, one seemed to dodge but he was sure he hit the other two.  Why was the crowd so loud?  He could hear Tommy wailing wordlessly behind him, and something broke inside Tehnoblade.  </p><p>He started loading the rockets and firing indiscriminately into the crowd below.  Any movement, any noise, and he sent a rocket their way.  He still heard noise, he desperately unloaded more rockets, who was laughing?  Who could be laughing right now?  How dare they?  Moments later he realized it was his own voice he was hearing.  He was laughing maniacally as he shot into the crowd.  Why?  He didn’t know, but everyone there deserved to suffer for watching a boy die and he was willing to be the hand of justice.  He heard a noise on the steps beside him, instantly hanging the crossbow on his shoulder and drawing his sword, lunging at Punz the moment he got to the stage.  The man was well armored and clearly a strong fighter, but not as good as him.  He had the upper hand.  After knocking him off the stage for a second time Techno turned to the sounds behind him. </p><p>He spun around just in time to see Quackity fade out of existence yet again, killed by his brother’s blade, having rushed back in after respawning nearby.  He saw Purpled, limping but making his way up, eyes focused on Tommy.  The bloodlust faded and Techno knew he had to get his brother out of there, that had to be his priority.  He lunged for Tommy, grabbing him by the arm and immediately pulling him towards the back of the stage. </p><p>“You killed him, you killed Tubbo!” Tommy yanked his arm out of Techno’s grasp yelling at him with all the righteous anger of someone who just saw their best friend killed at the hands of an ally.  Techno hated that, and he hated the blood across the front of Tommy’s shirt.  That meant when Tommy had gotten there Tubbo was still… he shook the thought off.  Refocus.  Get your brother to safety.  He grabbed a handful of pearls out of his bag and shoved them into his brother’s hand before he could protest. </p><p>“Go back to Pogtopia Tommy, meet up with Tubbo.  I’ll make sure Wilbur makes it out okay.”  Techno regretted how monotone his voice was.  Unsympathetic.  To his relief Tommy turned around and pearled away, the right direction too, which wasn’t always a given for Tommy.  Techno spun and met swords with Purpled, trying to sneak up on him.  He laughed darkly.  Oh well, more blood for the blood God.</p><p> </p><p>
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</p><p> </p><p>It was half an hour later when Techno, Wilbur, and Niki entered the top of the ravine and trudged down the unstable stairs.  Techno was tired in every way possible, but he had gotten everyone out of there, as impossible as Wilbur made the task by strolling up and practically inviting Schlatt to kill him.  Well, almost everyone.  Technoblade winced at the thought and looked around for the boys. </p><p>Tommy was spotted almost immediately, at the very bottom of the ravine filling up several bottles with water, he didn’t seem to notice their presence yet, his movements rushed.  When they reached the next flight of stairs Techno turned rather than continuing down.  The room Tommy and Tubbo shared was to the right and Techno had to see Tubbo.  Reassure himself that the boy was whole and alive.  He wanted to explain himself, maybe to make the situation clearer.  He wasn’t thinking straight when he hastily stepped into the room.  The room itself wasn’t particularly large, but it was enough for the two boys.  With a bed on either side of the room and a few chests scattered about, they made it comfortable.  Tubbo was sitting on his bed on the right-hand side of the room, curled up with his knees to his chest.  He looked so small.  As soon as Technoblade entered the boy reacted.  He flinched away eyes locking desperately onto the warrior, resting briefly on the sword, the rockets, the crossbow.  Suddenly he was gasping for air.</p><p>“Techno please” he gasped weakly “don’t!” he cried out, doubled over, one hand desperately clutching the front of his shirt.  Techno could see thick scars branching out from the collar.  He wanted to comfort Tubbo, he was tired, he didn’t understand.  He took another step forward, the boy desperately cringing away until his back hit the wall behind him with a thud.  His breathing got worse, he sounded like he was dying and Techno…</p><p>Techno was suddenly shoved back, hard.  Tommy pushed himself in between Techno and Tubbo shouting.</p><p>“Get the FUCK away from him!! Back the hell up!” Tommy practically growled as he continued to push Techno, who let himself be shoved out of the room entirely. </p><p>“I wanted to check on him, and explain--“</p><p>“You fucking killed him Technoblade, what is there to explain!! You killed Tubbo, you betrayed us, you, you—” Tommy was cut off by a laugh, a chuckle the seemed to echo through the canyon. </p><p>“Oh look out Technoblade, Tommy’s angry at you. Look at him, look at his eyes.”  Wilbur, the eldest of the three brothers, strolled up behind Techno, wrapping one lanky arm around his shoulder while he remarked mockingly at Tommy’s anger. </p><p>“What are you just, okay with this?” Tommy turned his attention to Wilbur in disbelief. </p><p>“Well I mean, Techno is known for killing, it’s what he does.  And Tubbo respawned, he’s back here and he’s fine.”  Wilbur’s point would have been more convincing if Tubbo couldn’t be heard clearly still struggling to breathe in the background.  Techno was tired, he was confused, and he was hurt how his quickly his brother simplified him to a mere killing machine.  But at least Wil was willing to hear him out.</p><p>Niki took the opportunity to scoot around the boys and pick up the water bottles from the floor where Tommy had obviously dropped them in his rush to get to Tubbo.</p><p>“Tommy, can I get past?” Niki spoke slowly, doing her best to calm the situation.</p><p>Tommy hesitated, looking at her scrutinizingly, concern written across his face.  Eventually he acquiesced.  “Alright Niki, just, move slow okay.  And don’t touch his shoulders, he… it…”</p><p>“I understand Tommy, I will be careful.” Tommy scooted aside to let her into the room, still bodily blocking Techno from nearing the doorway, as if afraid the warrior would push past and shoot Tubbo again if he gave him the chance.  Niki entered slowly, and though he couldn’t pick out the words, he could hear her speaking softly and soothingly. </p><p>“Tommy, I’m not going to hurt him.” Techno spoke without thinking, responding only to the fear his younger brother was suddenly displaying around him.  His family were the only people who didn’t constantly give him nervous looks and fearful glances and if that changed...</p><p>“But you did Technoblade, you shot Tubbo, you hurt him, you killed him!!”</p><p>“Those were dire circumstances Tommy!  There was a lot going on, a lot of—”</p><p>“There is NOTHING that could excuse what you did to Tubbo.  Nothing you can say would convince me!”</p><p>“I was under a lot of pressure Tommy”</p><p>“What you bend to peer pressure, are you a child!”</p><p>“HEY” Wilbur interrupted gleefully, “Are you two going to sort this out or not, because I’ve got an idea if you don’t…”</p><p>“Of course we aren’t just going to sort this out, I want him gone! I want Technoblade gone!” The venom in Tommy’s voice was brutal.  Wilbur practically leaped down the rest of the stairs, seemingly unconcerned with their continued argument.</p><p>“I’ve got a way we can settle this.”</p><p> </p><p>
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</p><p> </p><p>Not much later Tommy trudged back up the stairs to the room he shared with Tubbo.  He winced as he braced his hand against the wall, bruised ribs and torn knuckles protesting every movement vehemently.  He rounded the corner into their bedroom carefully, not wanting to disturb Tubbo if he was sleeping.  Unsurprisingly, the other boy was wide awake.  Tubbo was sitting in the middle of his bed, upright and staring at the door.</p><p>“What happened Tommy?” The brunette gasped and exclaimed, eyes focused on Tommy’s bruised face. </p><p>“It’s nothing Tubbo, you should see the other guy.” The last part was said almost jovially, as if calling back to a freer more irresponsible time, when Tommy would boast about everything.  He didn’t have the energy for that lately.  The attempted joke fell flat. </p><p>“I heard you and Technoblade” Tubbo spoke softly “You didn’t have to fight him.” </p><p>Tommy’s expression hardened, anger once again filling his eyes.  “Of course I did! I would do it again he can’t just stand there and make excuses like he didn’t just…” Tommy trailed off  “besides” his voice hesitant “Wilbur was forcing the issue, he got it in his head we needed to fight and lately… there’s no reasoning with him when he’s like that.”  Tommy stared hard at the floor for a moment, refusing to meet Tubbo’s eyes.  He needed to get himself under control, Tubbo needed him to be strong.  Thoughts ran through his head and he looked back up forcing a smile.</p><p>“Besides, I found this big man!” Tommy triumphantly held up a mostly empty bottle of healing potion “Someone left it laying around, I figured I should take a page from Big Crime and snatch it while I could.”  Tommy crossed the room and plopped down on the edge of his bed.  Carefully he uncorked the healing potion, determined not to spill and waste any of the precious resource.  He poured some on a mostly clean towel and began spreading it on his injuries.  Almost instantly the pain alleviated as he spread it across his torn fists, and he watched some of the minor scratches knit themselves back together.  He held the still damp rag to his swollen cheek, sighing at the relief.  Tommy glanced back down at the little left in the bottle, and up at Tubbo who was staring emptily across the room.  Tommy still had bruises, but they would heal.</p><p>“Tubbo, I’ve got some left, I know… I know how scars ache right after respawn” Tommy’s empty hand crept mindlessly up towards the arrow scar on his chest.  “This would help a bit”</p><p>Tubbo met his gaze, hesitating.  “I don’t know if I want to see…” Tommy ached as his best friend glanced down towards his own chest, then hastily looked at the wall.</p><p>“I’ll take care of it Tubbo, if you’ll let me” The smaller boy bit his lip, then silently nodded. </p><p>Tommy crossed to where Tubbo was sitting and folded his legs underneath him to sit cross legged in front of him.  Tubbo gave him a forced smile, and carefully started unbuttoning his light green shirt, willfully keeping his eyes up on Tommy.  As it fell open Tommy had to force himself not to react, not to gasp in anger.  Tommy had seen the scars earlier.  When Tubbo first respawned, he was still wearing the suit jacket and formal undershirt, which had been torn to shreds in the blast.  But at the time he had been so frantic, so relieved to see his friend alive that he hadn’t taken a good look.  Now Tommy was faced with it and he struggled to process.  The left-hand side of Tubbo’s chest was laced with burn scars, unevenly rippling across the skin.  They got slighter as they spread towards the edges from the center, where the rocket had hit him, but covered much of his chest.  Taking a deep breath and trying to force calm across his face, Tommy began coating them in what little was left of the potion.  He started with the center, gentling his touch when Tubbo flinched.  He didn’t have enough for all the scars, so he ignored the ones that looked less severe.  As he moved downward, he hesitated, eyes automatically following the thick line of an old scar crossing the other boys’ abdomen.  He briefly grew angry, remembering the betrayal that felt so long ago.  Ambushed and betrayed by someone they trusted.  Just like now. </p><p>He broke himself forcefully from his rumination, shaking his head to regain focus.  He knew Tubbo had a pretty nasty burn on his arm, he had managed to get his uninjured left arm up in front of his face before the rocket exploded, mostly shielding his face from the blast since he had turned his head away from it. </p><p>“Arm?” Tommy spoke, breaking the silence and holding out his hand.  Tubbo obediently gave the blond his arm, the whole forearm coated in more thick scarring. </p><p>“Tommy…” The voice broke Tommy out of his focus and he instantly looked up to Tubbo.  He noticed the tears in his best friends’ eyes and immediately released his arm, apologizing, thinking he had hurt him. </p><p>“No Tommy it’s… I need you to check something for me… please I…” Tubbo was afraid and hurting, and it rang in his voice. </p><p>“Of course, Big T, what is it?”  Tubbo didn’t answer, instead he slowly turned his head to the right, silent tears running down his face, and pushed aside the wavy hair covering his left ear.</p><p>This time Tommy did audibly gasp.  The exposed skin around the ear was scared severely, and the scarring ran down towards his neck a little, Tommy couldn’t understand how he didn’t notice before.  But that wasn’t the worst of it.  Tommy started to breathe heavier as his eyes focused on his best friends’ injury.  The ear itself was missing pieces, as if the blast and burns had pulled in the edges.  The ear that was left was heavily scarred, not a bit uncovered by the distinctive burn patterns. </p><p>“I don’t think I can hear from it Tommy, I tried snapping next to it earlier and… and…”  The boy was openly sobbing now, shoulders shaking as the shudders racked his body.  Tommy didn’t know how to help.  He felt useless watching his friend cry in front of him, he didn’t know what to say or how to comfort him, but he had to do something.  He scooted around until he was alongside Tubbo, between him and the wall, and invited him close.  Tubbo immediately leaned into Tommy’s side, allowing him to support him while he cried. </p><p>“It’ll be okay Tubbo” Tommy finally spoke, desperately trying to make his voice sound sure, and certain.  Like Wil’s used to when he led them into battle.  “Some regen potions will help; we will get you some and it’ll be better.  You’ll see.”  Over the next few minutes, the smaller boy’s sobs slowed and lessened, eventually stopping completely.  Tommy was exhausted, and he could tell Tubbo was too.  Slowly he sat up and turned towards his friend. </p><p>“If you lay down on your side, I can put the rest of the health pot on the rag and lay it on your ear while you rest.”  Tubbo was laying down before Tommy could even finish the sentence.  After adjusting the rag to assure it wouldn’t slip during the night Tommy moved over to his own bed and almost immediately fell asleep. </p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>They're back in Pogtopia!  That's good, right................?<br/>Man, Wilbur isn't acting nicely is he.  Poor boys.</p><p>Hope you enjoyed this chapter, I was going to wait longer to post it but couldn't resist.  Much more to come!<br/>--R&amp;T</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0003"><h2>3. Poking bruises and picking scabs</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Time moves onward.  Weeks pass.  Things aren't going well.  Wilbur is only getting worse, and Techno isn't around to see it happen.<br/>Until he is.</p>
          </blockquote><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>This is a rough one, big trigger warnings.  It jumps through the weeks following the festival and has the most intense panic attacks and flashbacks of this whole story.<br/>As a reminder, for the purpose of this story I've taken some characters and amplified a certain trait.  This story is completely non-cannon and doesn't reflect on the cannon characters or the people playing them.  </p><p>Also, I promise that the whole story isn't going to be like the following chapter, there is a lot more to come.  This chapter is an important part of setting up the rest of the story.  </p><p>TW: Panic attacks, Manipulation, Emotional Abuse, Flashbacks, Descriptions of injury, Blood, Anxiety.</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Tommy woke up with a start, heart racing and eyes straining in the darkness, he tried to determine the cause of his sudden jolt to consciousness.  He registered loud gasping breaths in the room, and within a second, he had crossed to room to his best friends’ bed. </p><p>“Hey Tubbo, you’re okay, it’s me, I’m here, you’re okay” Tommy muttered quiet reassurances, heart aching as Tubbo hyperventilated in front of him.  The lanky teen carefully set himself down on the bed next to Tubbo.  He knew better then to try to wrap his arms around him or hold him close, instead taking the boys hands and gently squeezing them as he talked.  Trying to bring him back to reality from the world of his night-terrors.</p><p>“No please, it burns I’m burning I…” Tubbo briefly wheezes out the panicked words, continuing to squirm and shudder as he is caught in his memories.</p><p>“It’s okay Tubbo, you’re safe” Tommy continues to whisper calming words then pulls one of Tubbo’s hands to his own chest.  “Just breathe big man, come on, breathe with me” Tommy takes intentionally deep breaths, and after a few minutes Tubbo is starting to slow down.  His eyes, which Tommy can just see in the half light, are losing their glossy look and beginning to focus. </p><p>“You’re doing great Tubbo, you’re doing—”</p><p>SLAM</p><p>Tommy was cut off by a banging noise, deafening in the silence of the canyon.  When his eyes shot up Wilbur was standing in the open doorway, having slammed their door against the stone wall with vehemence.  Wilbur was silhouetted by torchlight, his expression invisible.  Tommy became aware of Tubbo tossed back into a full panic, pleading, and struggling to breathe, surely hearing the explosions again. </p><p>“Wilbur!  I’ve told not to make such loud noises when—” Tommy hesitated, suddenly regretting the forceful way he spoke as he saw Wilbur stiffen.  He deliberately made his voice softer, less confrontational.   “they’re bad for Tubbo Wil.”</p><p>“How do you think I feel Tommy, getting woken up every night!  I’ve got a lot of work to do Tommy, don’t you think I need my rest?  It’s been a week already, I’ve got revolutions to plan, and I. CAN’T.  SLEEP.” Wilbur wasn’t waiting for a response.  He spun on his heel only pausing to toss a final “Keep quiet” over his shoulder, then was already headed back to his room.</p><p>Tommy turned his attention back to Tubbo, again trying to calm him from the panic and pain.  It took much longer this time for Tubbo to become aware of his surroundings.  Even longer for the boys to fall back asleep.  By the time they were both resting, it was almost morning.</p><p> </p><p>
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</p><p> </p><p>The diet of the Pogtopians was bland and scarce.  Since the festival the group had almost entirely been subsisting on potatoes alone, so when Techno brought fresh meat to the canyon one evening Tommy was less unhappy to see him than usual.  It didn’t mean he didn’t glare at him and make sure he always knew where he was, keeping him well away from Tubbo.  But when invited to come down from their room and get some food Tommy was more than willing to do so.  He had just grabbed two dishes, intending to bring Tubbo’s portion back up to the room he was hiding out in, when a smell overwhelmed him.  His senses were flooded in an instant.</p><p>Tommy wasn’t even aware of himself as he dropped the plates on the floor, ignoring the shattering, and rushed to a corner to vomit heavily. </p><p>He was holding Tubbo tight to his chest and, oh god there was so much blood everywhere it was flowing dripping.  He adjusted the smaller boy in his arms.  He looked down at him hearing someone wail from what sounded like far away.  Tubbo was burnt, he was dying, and he was hurting so much.  Tommy held him as he shook and shuddered, barely able to cry out in pain.  His best friend was dying he was dying in his arms he was burnt so much the smell the smell the smell he was burnt he was dying…</p><p>Tommy jerked to consciousness with a bump on his head and Niki by his side. </p><p>“TUBBO!” Tommy cried the boy’s name, his last thoughts having been of blood and burning and the horrible, horrible smell.</p><p>“I’m right here Tommy” Tubbo took his arm reassuringly, kneeling on the ground next to him.</p><p>Instantly Tommy pulled Tubbo close and they wrapped their arms around each other desperately. </p><p>“I’m right here” Tubbo repeated the phrase until Tommy stopped shaking.  They held on for each other for dear life.  They only had each other. </p><p> </p><p>
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</p><p> </p><p>“Hey Tommy, do you think Tubbo will be ready to fight when the time comes, when we go to war again?”  Wilbur had pulled Tommy aside from the chores the two boys were doing, out of earshot.</p><p>“Of, of course Wil.  Tubbo’s a good fighter, you know that.” Tommy tried to keep the stutter out of his voice.  He wasn’t sure what Wilbur was planning, but when he got like this, schemes written across his face, Tommy worried.</p><p>“Sure, Tommy, sure.  You won’t mind then if I check for myself, will you?  After all, you’re my right-hand man, I need your help to make sure everyone is ready.” Wilbur’s voice was calm and collected, but it held a dangerous undertone.  Tommy knew that tone.  Wilbur would start off talking about reasonable plans of action.  Methods of attack.  Then he would be ranting about traitors and trust and explosions before you could even blink, trying to connect it to something you agreed with.  Tommy stiffened, prepared for a verbal battle as he would try to talk Wil down, but was wholly blindsided by his older brother’s next actions. </p><p>In an instant Wilbur had grabbed something out of a chest and started striding back to the other room, quick authoritative steps putting him paces ahead of Tommy.</p><p>“What are you doing?  Wil?  Wil!” By the time Tommy saw what Wilbur had grabbed he was too late to do anything.  He had already reached the room Tubbo was working in and called the boys’ name.  Tubbo turned around only for a look of pure panic and terror to overtake his demeanor.  He threw himself backwards away from Wilbur in blind fear, almost immediately tripping and falling, slamming hard onto the stone floor of the canyon.  He cried out pleas of anguish, and Tommy was furious.  He threw himself at Wilbur, knocking the crossbow out of his older brother’s hands with far more force then necessary. </p><p>“What the Hell Wilbur!!” Tommy got up in his face and shouted.</p><p>“Tommy.” Wilburs voice was steady and deep.  “If Tubbo can’t handle that then how do you expect him to do in a real battle?” Tommy took a breath from shouting, angry, but forced to consider Wilbur’s words.</p><p>“He’ll just die Tommy.  He will die again and again.  That’s why I’m doing this.  You don’t want him to die, do you Tommy?”  Something was wrong here, Tommy knew it.  He was just so tired he couldn’t work it out.  He wanted Tubbo to be safe, it made sense in some way.  But as he listened to his friend gasping for breath behind him, he knew something was wrong with what Wilbur was saying…</p><p>“Of course not Wil” Tommy answered cautiously.</p><p>“Then we need to practice this.  As my right-hand man, you know we need every fighter we can get Tommy, I’m relying on you.” Wilbur looked dispassionate as he spoke evenly.  He walked over to the crossbow, retrieved it from the floor, and left without another word. </p><p>Tommy knew Wilbur had twisted his words somehow, he knew this argument didn’t make sense.  But he had to prioritize.  Tommy turned around and knelt to help calm down his best friend, dreading the thought that this would be happening again. </p><p> </p><p>
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</p><p> </p><p>Techno rarely came to Pogtopia proper these days.  He had his own base nearby, close enough to be there if Wilbur needed something, but considerably warmer and better supplied then the damp canyon the rest called home.  He had been busy, getting supplies and weapons almost singlehandedly since the festival almost a month ago.  Preparing for conflict.  He told himself all the grinding was why he hadn’t visited the canyon in nearly a week, but deep inside he knew the truth.  Techno was avoiding his brothers and his guilt by staying away.  Wil had started to make him uncomfortable, as much as he hated to admit it.  Something about his demeanor was so far removed from the way things used to be that Techno could barely reconcile this new Wilbur with his memories.  And then there was Tommy.   Over the past weeks Tommy and Techno had an uneasy truce.  They could coexist in the same room for a couple of hours when necessary, but Tommy made no efforts to hide his persisting anger.  Naturally, there was also Tubbo to consider.  Techno knew his presence made the boy uncomfortable.  As much as he wanted to sit down with him and explain himself, to try to make things right somehow, he was resigned to being looked at with fear and avoided.</p><p> But this morning Techno had some supplies for the rest of the Pogtopians, so he reluctantly made the trip and descended the stairs to the cavernous space.  He had only just entered the ravine when he heard footsteps below him and hesitated.  The last thing he wanted was to run into Tommy or Tubbo immediately, and the sounds were coming from near their room.  Techno instead moved a few steps down to the first landing and peered across the way, from this angle he could see the entrance to the room the younger boys shared from above, and most of the walkway.  Immediately Technoblade released a breath he didn’t even realize he had been holding.  It was just Wilbur, no cause for alarm.  He almost called out to his brother, but something in him held back the greeting.  The way Wilbur was approaching the boys’ room, his posture, he looked angry.  Techno didn’t know what was wrong, heaven knows those boys could give anyone reason for anger, but he watched silently none the less. </p><p>Wilbur reached the entrance to the room and paused, hanging in the doorway a bit too long for Techno’s comfort.  Then he pulled out a pouch of something, unidentifiable from this distance.  The lanky brunette seemed to dump the contents out on the floor, just inside their doorway, before taking a step back.  A chill ran up Techno’s back, some inner voice wanting to step in and stop whatever Wil was doing, convinced it was sinister.  Another voice was louder though.  This was his brother, surely this was innocent.  Nothing bad would happen—</p><p>Wilbur tossed a lit match onto the messy pile.</p><p>In a second the substance started to burn bright, and an instant later noise erupted in the ravine.  A scream of terror tore through the space, shrill beyond belief.  Techno could hear Tubbo crying out from this distance, and immediately he knew why.  The smell of burning gunpowder filled his senses.  He smelled gunpowder and Tubbo was screaming.  He smelled gunpowder; it filled the ravine overpowering everything else.  He smelled gunpowder and…</p><p>Tommy was shouting at Wilbur.  The world snapped back into focus with Wilbur and Tommy center stage.  He couldn’t decipher what Tommy had said, but Wilbur’s reply was more than audible.</p><p>“You need to learn to get up on time.  Now go get to work, we have a lot to do today.” Wilbur’s voice was bored, as if he were reading the weather forecast.  Techno could see his youngest brothers’ shoulders heaving, though whether from anger or panic he couldn’t determine. </p><p>“I, let me check on Tubbo first Wil.” Tommy sounded beyond exhausted, far past his breaking point.  Yet Wilbur went further.</p><p>“No Tommy.  Go get to work.  Now.  That is an order from your president.”  The voice was stern, and Techno recognized the tone of threat.  As apparently did Tommy, who gave one last longing look towards his room, and proceeded down to steps into the ravine with Wilbur close behind.  Techno could still hear Tubbo in the grip of panic from across the chasm.  In a moment of certainty Techno dropped the bundles of supplies where he stood and retreated back up to the surface. </p><p>He had something he needed to do.</p><p> </p><p>
  <strong>======================================================================================</strong>
</p><p> </p><p>Technoblade sat down heavily in his base, taking a moment to absorb what he had witnessed.  He looked down at his communicator, thinking carefully about what to do.  He <em>knew</em> Wilbur was acting strange, insane even.  He <em>knew</em> that Tommy had a lot of pressure on his shoulders.  He <em>knew</em> that Tubbo was suffering immensely from the aftereffects of the festival.  But still he had avoided the ravine, ignored the problems until… how could things have gotten this out of hand?  He noticed almost passively how much his hands were shaking.  Techno had fought in hundreds of battles with steeled nerves, but in this moment, he was unable to stop his hands from quivering.  He took several deep breaths then opened the private chats.</p><p>
  <strong>&lt;Technoblade&gt; hey Phil, you busy right now?</strong>
</p><p>Techno sat back, he hadn’t messaged his adoptive father in ages, he wasn’t expecting a quick response.</p><p>Immediately his wrist pinged</p><p>
  <strong>&lt;Philza&gt; Not too busy to chat with one of my sons, what’s up techno?  It’s been a while since I’ve heard from you</strong>
</p><p>
  <strong>&lt;Philza&gt; any of you really, is everything alright over there?</strong>
</p><p>Techno hesitated chuckling to himself sardonically, how do you communicate something like this. </p><p>
  <strong>&lt;Technoblade&gt; Honestly no.  Things are suboptimal </strong>
</p><p>
  <strong>&lt;Philza&gt; Techno, how bad is it?  Are you all safe? </strong>
</p><p>
  <strong>&lt;Technoblade&gt; There hasn’t been any fighting for a couple of weeks but</strong>
</p><p>
  <strong>&lt;Technoblade&gt; Wilbur isn’t himself.  I’m worried about Tommy and Tubbo</strong>
</p><p>Even though Phil had only met Tommy’s best friend a handful of times, Techno knew he already thought of him as an extension of their family.  He had felt the same way somewhere deep inside.  Thinking of Tubbo opened a pit of guilt he wasn’t willing to delve into right now.  He focused on the messages.</p><p>
  <strong>&lt;Technoblade&gt; Tommy won’t let me close enough to help them.  It’s understandable considering everything that’s happened</strong>
</p><p>
  <strong>&lt;Philza&gt; What has happened Techno? </strong>
</p><p>
  <strong>&lt;Technoblade&gt; Far too much for a message Phil.  </strong>
</p><p>
  <strong>&lt;Philza&gt; I’m going to come over there for a visit</strong>
</p><p>Techno felt fear settle across his chest as he considered what he had to say.  Mentally he was begging and hoping beyond all reason that Phil would give him a chance to air his guilt before hating him. </p><p>
  <strong>&lt;Technoblade&gt; You should know before coming, I killed Tubbo at the festival weeks back.  It was bad</strong>
</p><p>
  <strong>&lt;Technoblade&gt; They need you here.  We all need you here.  I understand if you can’t be here for a few days.  Just let me know </strong>
</p><p>
  <strong>&lt;Philza&gt; I will be there tomorrow morning, meet me at world spawn.</strong>
</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>How you doing after that one?<br/>Yeah, same.<br/>I hope to get the next chapter posted tomorrow, if only because I hate to leave it like this for any longer then necessary.  <br/>I hope you enjoyed and look forward to getting the rest of this story out to you. :)<br/>--R&amp;T</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0004"><h2>4. Interceding</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Philza gets a concerning message.  He knows when it's time to step in.<br/>But will Tommy and Tubbo be able to trust him after everything that's happened?</p>
          </blockquote><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Here comes Dadza.</p><p>TW:  Anxiety, Panic attacks, Flashbacks, Trauma, Injury, Implied violence</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>When Philza’s communicator pinged, the distinctive ringtone alerting him to a message from one of his sons he felt a rush of joy.  They had all been out of contact with him for over a month now.  This wasn’t particularly unusual for the group, who tended to get caught up in their own worlds, but they hadn’t been responding to him either.  He had been beginning to get worried.  He immediately dropped the scaffolding and glass he had been using in a pile and plopped down on the quartz steps nearby.  Upon seeing the message was from Techno, Phil’s expression changed to one of vague unease, reflecting the sinking feeling like a stone in his stomach.  Of his three adopted sons (soon to be four if Tommy had his way) Techno was the least likely to message him out of the blue like this.  In fact, the piglin hybrid rarely talked to Philza at all.  Unlike Wilbur who would periodically reach out for advice or Tommy who would randomly rant about “the green bastard” Techno preferred to deal with things himself. </p><p>Philza took a deep deliberate breath.  It was probably fine, just ask what’s going on.  He couldn’t wipe the sick feeling from his stomach as he replied though. </p><p>
  <strong>&lt;Philza&gt; Not too busy to chat with one of my sons, what’s up techno?  It’s been a while since I’ve heard from you</strong>
</p><p>
  <strong>&lt;Philza&gt; any of you really, is everything alright over there?</strong>
</p><p>He originally was going to keep it casual, but some dad-like instinct forced him to send the second message.  He knew Techno well enough to recognize that if the warrior wasn’t forced into opening up, he wouldn’t do so at all. </p><p>Ping</p><p>
  <strong>&lt;Technoblade&gt; Honestly no.  Things are suboptimal </strong>
</p><p>This message hit Philza like a runaway train.  By the time he had read it three times he was already headed for the portal, to get back to the overworld.  For Techno to admit things aren’t going well meant something had gone terribly, terribly wrong. </p><p>
  <strong>&lt;Philza&gt; Techno, how bad is it?  Are you all safe? </strong>
</p><p>
  <strong>&lt;Technoblade&gt; There hasn’t been any fighting for a couple of weeks but</strong>
</p><p>
  <strong>&lt;Technoblade&gt; Wilbur isn’t himself.  I’m worried about Tommy and Tubbo</strong>
</p><p>Philza took several forced deep breaths, concern for his boys overshadowing everything else.  Techno was worried.  Techno, the warrior, the piglin hybrid with nerves of steel, who charged headfirst into every battle, was worried.  About Tommy and Tubbo no less.  Phil knew all his sons cared for and loved each other, but Techno and Tommy weren’t the closest.  Wilbur had always been the one that worked between the two, calm enough to temper Tommy’s fiery spirit, and empathetic enough to help Techno in his struggles to communicate his feelings.  This system bound the three of them together tightly, but if it had broken down…  Philza was typing out his response when another message pinged in.</p><p> <strong>&lt;Technoblade&gt; Tommy won’t let me close enough to help them.  It’s understandable considering everything that’s happened</strong></p><p>
  <strong>&lt;Philza&gt; What has happened Techno? </strong>
</p><p>
  <strong>&lt;Technoblade&gt; Far too much for a message Phil.  </strong>
</p><p>His boys needed him. </p><p>
  <strong>&lt;Philza&gt; I’m going to come over there for a visit</strong>
</p><p>Philza was already packing his bags, almost surprised to get another ping on his communicator.  He expected Techno to consider the matter settled. </p><p>
  <strong>&lt;Technoblade&gt; You should know before coming, I killed Tubbo at the festival weeks back.  It was bad</strong>
</p><p>
  <strong>&lt;Technoblade&gt; They need you here.  We all need you here.  I understand if you can’t be here for a few days.  Just let me know </strong>
</p><p>Techno killed Tubbo.  That was a shock to his system.  As violent as Techno’s problem-solving methods tended to be, and as hard as it was for him to show it, when Techno cared about people they became more important than just about everything else.  Phil knew Techno cared about Tubbo, if not as an individual then at least as an extension of his care for Tommy.  He steeled himself for what was to come.</p><p>
  <strong>&lt;Philza&gt; I will be there tomorrow morning, meet me at world spawn.</strong>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <strong>======================================================================================</strong>
</p><p> </p><p>Philza didn’t know what he was expecting the Dream SMP world spawn to look like, but the wall surrounding him built out of seemingly random materials was not it.  He slowly walked around examining the wall, sighing to himself and already missing his elytra wings.  Finally, he found a small gap in the ugly thing and stepped out into the forest.  He was pulling out his communicator, preparing to ask Techno where to meet, when he heard hoofbeats approaching.  Punctual as always Techno.</p><p>“Hello son.” Philza looked up at Technoblade as his brought his horse to a stop.  He tried to make eye contact, but Techno seemed to be unable to meet his gaze.</p><p>“Hullo Phil.” A pause.  “What first?”</p><p>“I’d like to see the boys” Techno grunted in affirmation and helped pull Phil onto the horse behind him.  As they rode Techno finally spoke up.</p><p>“Wilbur should be out for most of the morning.  It’ll be better to talk to them without him there.”  When questioned Techno refused to elaborate further, simply grunting in response.  In the distance a large cobblestone tower with bizarre pink stipes came into view.  Philza quietly grumbled to himself about the total lack of standards for building on this server, which finally drew a response out from Technoblade.</p><p>“Don’t let Tommy hear you say that, he loves that ugly tower” Philza was relieved to hear the humor in his sons voice, some normalcy bleeding into the tense situation. </p><p>Finally, Techno stopped the horse in front of a seemingly random hill.  There were no buildings in sight and Phil looked around with confusion while Techno tied the horse to a nearby tree.  But when Techno walked over to some random dirt and pushed it aside, revealing a room hidden within the hill, Phil followed. </p><p>“This is a little small wouldn’t you say?” Phil chuckled upon entering the tiny room, only big enough for a bed, a furnace, and a couple of chests.  Again, Techno only grunted, before proceeding down a spiral staircase in the back of the room.  Phil gasped as he entered the canyon, it was cold and damp, but clearly someone had put care into making it a little more habitable.  There were lamps suspended throughout the area lighting it up in a gentle glow.  He was so caught up in examining the space, that he didn’t notice when Techno abruptly stopped walking, and bumped into him roughly. </p><p>“The boys will be down there, you can just shout, they’ll hear you.  They won’t want to see me.  Imma stay up there and make sure Wil doesn’t come back early.” The piglin hybrid turned back without another word, leaving Philza seemingly alone in the canyon.</p><p>He took a deep breath, trying to prepare himself for whatever state the boys would be in. </p><p>“Tommy?  You around here?” He called out into the space, hearing it echo as he continued down the stairs towards the bottom of the ravine.  Suddenly he heard a rush of footsteps and was nearly knocked over as the lanky blond threw himself at Phil from an unseen hallway. </p><p>“Philza Minecraft!?” Phil embraced Tommy, holding the boy close for a few moments until he pulled back.</p><p>“I didn’t know you were coming!  What are you doing here?” Philza took the moment to get a look at the boy while he was questioned.  His heart ached as he noticed how skinny, how frail Tommy had become.  The boy had always been slim, but now he was practically emaciated, with skin sunken around his cheekbones and shoulders.  His face had more wrinkles then such a young man’s should, and there were dark circles under his eyes.  The boy looked exhausted. </p><p>“I heard things weren’t going well over here and I wanted to come check in” He grimaced as he watched Tommy’s demeanor change, his shoulders stiffening and eyes flicking to the side.</p><p>“Oh, well.  The war is slow.  If you want to talk about that you’ll want Wilbur, he’s out right now.”</p><p>Phil chose his next words carefully.</p><p>“No, Tommy, not to say I don’t care about your rebellion, but I’m here to check on you and Tubbo.  I want to know if you’re doing okay.”  Tommy was slow to respond, seeming to be considering how much he wanted to share.</p><p>“Phil I” His voice broke “I’ve been trying to keep Wil in check but he’s gone out of control and Tubbo is hurting and—"  He cut himself off, as if afraid he would break down if he continued. Staring hard at the floor. </p><p>“Can I see Tubbo Tommy?  Is there somewhere we can all talk?”</p><p>“I’ve really got to finish this work; Wilbur will be furious if I’m not done when he gets back.”  Tommy sounded on the verge of tears and it broke Philza’s heart.  Tommy hadn’t cried in front of him in years, since he decided he was a “Big Man” and too tough for that stuff.</p><p>“Don’t worry about that, I will take care of Wilbur, and Techno is keeping watch to make sure he doesn’t come back unexpectedly.”  Philza almost regretted mentioning Techno, but Tommy didn’t seem to notice.  Instead he just looked relieved.</p><p>“Okay, yeah, Tubbo is up in our room, we can talk there too.” Tommy turned and started leading the way back up some steps until they reached a doorway.  Tommy stopped and turned to face Philza, suddenly looking profoundly serious.</p><p>“Philza, please, uh Tubbo, he doesn’t like feeling trapped and he can’t stand his shoulders being touched and shit.” The blond spoke hesitantly, dropping his shoulders and looking small even as he stood far taller than the older man.  “Please don’t, like, stand in the doorway or nothin.  If that’s okay?” Phil didn’t understand why Tommy was so hesitant, but when he saw the pleading look in his eyes he knew someone must have made the boy feel like he wasn’t going to be listened too. </p><p>“Of course, Tommy, tell me if I’m doing something that will make either of you uncomfortable, okay mate?” Tommy looked relieved and nodded, turning, and slipping into the room.</p><p> </p><p>
  <strong>======================================================================================</strong>
</p><p> </p><p>Tubbo looked up as Tommy and Philza entered the room, he had heard someone come down into the ravine and couldn’t place the voice, but he recognized the friendly face, short blond hair, and green and white stripped hat.  Tommy entered quickly and hopped onto the bed, between him and the wall, the usual spot so Tubbo didn’t feel trapped in.  He watched as Philza entered the room, the man had always been incredibly kind before, but Tubbo would have said the same about Wilbur, in the past.  He was more cautious now. </p><p>Tubbo still started to relax despite himself.  Philza stepped into the room and out of the doorway immediately, before slowly moving towards Tommy’s bed, very intentionally broadcasting his movements in a calming manner.  Phil waited to speak until he was seated on Tommy’s bed, a comfortable distance away from the boys.</p><p>“Hello Tubbo”</p><p> </p><p>
  <strong>======================================================================================</strong>
</p><p> </p><p>Phil’s eyes adjusted as he entered the slightly darker room.  He noticed where Tubbo sat in the center of the bed, clearly nervous and flinching at every movement Phil made.  He made every effort to move slowly and clearly, for both boys, as Tommy was staring him down, never taking his eyes off him for a moment even once he was seated.  Tommy had become more defensive the moment they entered the room, clearly feeling like he needed to protect Tubbo. </p><p>“Hello Tubbo”</p><p>“Hello Philza Minecraft” The boy responded with his nickname and the barest trace of a smile before turning his head towards Tommy questioningly.</p><p>“Philza heard some stuff and wanted to check on us.” Tommy helpfully answered the unspoken question.</p><p>“I was hoping to hear the whole story of what happened, last time I got word from anyone was when you and Wilbur were kicked out after the election.”  Upon seeing the anxious looks on the boys faces Philza hesitated, he needed to know what was going on so he could help, but he didn’t want to make either of them relive bad events.  “We can go slow and take lots of breaks, you don’t need to talk about anything you don’t want to.  But I’m here to help”</p><p>The boys shared a look Philza couldn’t decipher before finally Tommy nodded. </p><p>“Well you see it all started with…”</p><p>Tommy began to tell of the events after the election.  How he and Wilbur were forced to flee, how Tubbo had been ordered to hunt them down but only pretended to do so, and how they discovered the crossed ravines they now lived in.  He shared about setting up Pogtopia and the early days of building tunnels and sneaking around when Techno joined.  He told about how Niki was being mistreated and how Tubbo was spying for them, meeting them in secret to share intel.  He paused taking a breath</p><p>“Then, then Wilbur started to go crazy Phil!  He decided that since we lost the election and were rebelling anyway that made us that bad guys, and he didn’t care.”  Tommy’s voice got breathy and frantic.  “When he heard about the festival, he went mad, saying that if he couldn’t have Manburg then no one would.  He even talked to dream, asking for tnt and saying he wanted to be a vassal.”  As Tommy’s voice continued to rise Philza watched Tubbo take his hand, forcing him to pause and comforting him. </p><p>“He wanted to blow it all up Phil.  He planted loads of tnt and was gonna blow it up killing everyone and destroying the whole place.  I, I tried to talk him out of it Phil, I couldn’t let him alone cause I never knew if, if any day he would just…” Tommy trailed off his voice choking.</p><p>“You did good Tommy, he should never have made that your responsibility.  You did good.”  Tommy turned his head away, trying to hide the tears in his eyes.  Tubbo scooted closer to him and leaned in little, taking a breath and picking up where Tommy left off. </p><p>“Well I was setting up for this festival event, and I knew something was up, but Wilbur hadn’t really let me talk to Tommy for a few days.  Um, I, I was supposed to give a speech, after Schlatt.  He, he gave this big speech about how I was a good right hand and stuff.  Then I gave my speech, I knew there was a chance Willbur would blow everything up after my speech, but he had said if he did he would make sure I was out of the way first.  So, I wasn’t worried about that.”  Tubbo faltered, he had been surprisingly steady through all that, but clearly whatever happened next wasn’t good.  Phil took deep breaths, trying to radiate calm even though he was feeling sick in anticipation.</p><p>“As I finished my speech Schlatt started laughing and I was real confused but then he grabbed me and, and, and—” Tubbo started to lose his control, gasping for air and shaking.  Tommy moved a little away from him to Philza’s surprise, and instead opted to hold both his hands, murmuring that he was safe.</p><p> </p><p>
  <strong>======================================================================================</strong>
</p><p> </p><p>Tubbo felt Schlatt grab his shoulder far too tightly, when he protested Schlatt ignored him and tightened his grip, he could feel bruises already starting to form.  He had to play innocent it had worked before, but Schlatt wasn’t buying it, why wasn’t he buying it?  He heard a grinding noise behind him, and when he caught a glimpse it looked like a prison cell had suddenly appeared on the stage.  Schlatt was facing him now pulling him close and whispering in his ear.</p><p>“I’d rather rule alone then with you”</p><p>He was pushed back and then he was trapped and Wilbur said he wouldn’t hurt him, Techno wouldn’t hurt him he was on their side, he was trapped and his arm hurt first and he was burning how could he, he said, he said…</p><p>Tubbo felt a pressure on his hands, and gentle tapping, why?  Why, nothing was touching his hands he was burning, he was…</p><p>He heard a voice whisper his name that he didn’t recognize.  Who was that?  Couldn’t they see he was burning, and it hurt and…</p><p>The pressure on his hands continued though, and he heard another voice.  Tommy?  Tommy was here. Tommy was saying something. </p><p>“You’re safe, you’re here, I’m right here Tubbo” </p><p>Slowly Tubbo became aware of his surroundings again, the residual pain from the memories slowly fading.  He saw Philza kneeling in front of the bed and heard him murmuring comfortingly.  He felt Tommy beside him and since he no longer felt trapped, he moved closer again.  He was back.   </p><p> </p><p>
  <strong>======================================================================================</strong>
</p><p> </p><p>When Tubbo started to panic Philza instantly stood, wanting nothing more than to comfort the boy, but thought better of it when Tommy gave him a hard look, as if daring him to come closer.  Phil showed his hands and moved slowly, again having to reassure his own son that he wasn’t a threat.  It was like approaching an injured animal, he kneeled on the floor in front of the bed the boys were on, making himself smaller.  He kept his eyes on Tommy, making sure this was okay before he started joining Tommy in calmly talking to Tubbo, reassuring him that he was safe. </p><p>It took a few minutes for Tubbo’s eyes to start focusing, his breathing to slow, and him to become aware. </p><p>“Good job son, you’re doing great, just breathe.”  Philza kept up a steady stream of murmuring until Tubbo’s eyes had stopped being glassy and blank.  Once he knew Tubbo was back with them he carefully moved back to the other bed, giving the boys space. </p><p>“We can take a break for a bit—” Phil started</p><p>“No, no it’s okay, that one wasn’t that bad… comparatively.” Tubbo looked up at him and forced a smile that didn’t quite reach his eyes.  “we can keep going”</p><p>“Are you sure?”  Tommy questioned; eyes filled with concern.</p><p>“Yeah uh,” Tubbo took a deep breath before continuing.  “Schlatt pushed me into a cage thing he had set up on stage, it wasn’t there before but I assume it used redstone.”  Tubbo spoke clinically, as if to distract himself from what was coming. </p><p>“He, he called Technoblade up on stage and… he told him to kill me.  To, to execute me as a traitor.  He somehow found out and he had planned this, this whole thing” Tommy squeezed Tubbo’s hands, reminding him to slow down, to breathe, that he was safe now. </p><p>“Techno looked… he looked confused and overwhelmed.  Schlatt pulled him aside but then he came back.  Wilbur was messaging me saying to stay strong, and that Techno wouldn’t hurt me, and I believed him.  So when Techno told me to come close to him I just walked over but next thing I knew he had a sword and I only barely moved out of the way, he got my arm, and then—”</p><p>“And then he shot him Phil!” Tommy heard Tubbo’s voice shaking and took over the story.  Albeit much angrier than the smaller boy had been.  “He shot him with a Fucking firework after Schlatt told him to!”</p><p>Both boys fell into silence for a moment.</p><p>“Fucking shit, you boys have been through Hell.”  Philza wasn’t really thinking, he just spoke into the silence.  He looked up to see the shocked looks on both their faces, uh oh.  Did he say something wrong?</p><p>Suddenly both boys started laughing, it was tiny little giggles that quickly turned to tears as they clung to each other, exhausted and weeping nearly silently. </p><p>Phil looked at them until he caught Tommy’s eye.  “May I?”</p><p>The blond nodded and scooted over, making more room between him and the wall.  Phil crossed over to their bed and joined them in their embrace, holding them close as they wept.  He was able to feel as some of the tension left their shoulders, eventually the crying petered out into comfortable silence. </p><p>Tommy was the first to speak up.</p><p>“Since then Wilbur has only gotten worse Phil.  He keeps… he’s not the same.  And Techno—”</p><p>The blond cut off his own voice with an angry growl. </p><p>“I’m not really mad at Technoblade anymore.”  Phil jolted to hear Tubbo speak up softly, almost a murmur.  “I mean, I sorta see why he did it.  There was a lot going on and no obvious solution.  I could see how… how he didn’t want to.”  The boy lapsed back into silence for a full minute.  “I still can’t, I can’t be around him Philza, when I see him, I’m right back on that stage and...”</p><p>“I know Tubbo, it’s okay.  Neither of you need to be around anyone you don’t want to be.  I’ll make sure of it.”  Both boys relaxed, Tommy somehow managed to hop to the other side of Phil, allowing Tubbo to tuck against his chest as well.  Philza leaned back with a boy on each side, all breathing evenly.  He stayed like that for a long time. </p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Philza to the rescue maybe?<br/>I'm sure nothing bad could happen now...  </p><p>Thanks a bunch for reading!<br/>--R&amp;T</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0005"><h2>5. Finding a friendly face</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Philza and Niki agree Pogtopia isn't safe right now.<br/>But who can they go to for help?</p>
          </blockquote><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Shorter Chapter this time, just worked out that way pacing wise.  </p>
<p>TW: Anxiety, Panic attacks, referenced violence, referenced injury</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>An indeterminate amount of time later Phil heard a light knock on the wall outside the door. </p>
<p>“Hello, boys, I wanted to check on you, can I come in?” a light feminine voice called from the hallway.  Phil looked down at the boys and Tommy gave him a nod. </p>
<p>“Yeah come in” Philza called out.  When the young woman entered she wore a puzzled expression on her face, Phil suspected from hearing an unfamiliar voice.  As she stepped fully into the room (Philza noted her quick sidestep into the room, just like Tommy) her expression turned to downright shock at seeing a stranger sitting with both boys curled up against him.  She hadn’t seen the boys willingly have physical contact with anyone, other than each other, since before the festival. </p>
<p>“Hey Niki, this is Philza Minecraft, he’s my dad.” Tommy helpfully pipped up. </p>
<p>“Hello there” she took it all in stride and stuck out her hand, “I’m Niki, like Tommy said”</p>
<p>As he shook her hand Philza nodded, remembering old letters Wil had sent mentioning her.  “I’ve heard a lot about you Niki.” The girl smiled back, she looked exhausted, but more alive than the boys.  Phil suspected it might be a facade for their benefit, there was a deep sadness behind her eyes he couldn’t place.</p>
<p>“Might I ask, I mean, what are you doing here?” Niki asked good naturedly.  Phil noticed her eyes had kept scanning the boys, yet another person on guard in their defense. </p>
<p>“Well first things first, I’m gonna get these boys out of this hole in the ground and somewhere better.” The boys both jolted at this declaration, looking up at him with wide eyes.  “From what I’ve heard this isn’t a safe place anymore, and I’m not leaving you somewhere unsafe.” He said in explanation.  He watched as they boys looked at each other, seeming to have an entire conversation in the silence.  He didn’t interrupt, just sat patiently while they figured things out.  Eventually they nodded at each other, and at him.</p>
<p>“Niki, I wouldn’t like to leave you here either” Philza had decided.  The boys clearly trusted her, so he should keep her safe as well.  “Will you come with?”</p>
<p>She seemed to think deeply about this for many seconds.  “I… worry about leaving Wil… but…” she looked at the boys.  “Yes, I’ll come with” She ended the phrase with a reassuring smile. </p>
<p>“Good, now that that’s settled, I don’t exactly have a place on the server to go to.  Do you have any friends or places that would be safe?  And that wouldn’t tell anyone we were there?”  Phil was hoping the young women would know somewhere, because he certainly didn’t, and though he could whip up a house in a few days he wanted to spend that time figuring things out with all his sons. </p>
<p>Again, Niki deliberated silently.  Finally, she answered, a smile traced on her lips.</p>
<p>“I think I might have an idea”</p>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>
<hr/>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>
<p>Niki was the one to knock on the front door.  The house loomed over the odd group, all shiny quartz and glass, but Phil thought it still managed to feel inviting.  Mostly he was just glad to see someone cared about the quality of their builds on this server.  Niki stood in the front, Phil behind with the boys.  Tommy stood protectively on Tubbo’s left, having held that arrangement since they left Pogtopia.  </p>
<p>When she had suggested this as a place to seek refuge for a bit, the boys had been somewhat hesitant, but eventually agreed.  Philza was certain they would be hesitant no matter what considering all they’d been through.  He still was struggling to wrap his mind around what he had learned, every time he thought about it, he was astonished to see the boys still functioning at all.  But if one thing is certain those boys were survivors. </p>
<p>The door opened suddenly, making the boys flinch in his peripheral vision.</p>
<p>“Hello?” as the door opened a tall figure, about the same height as Tommy came into view.  Clearly some sort of hybrid, the man had ashy skin and glowing white eyes, along with two decent sized horns going upwards with a small spiral.    His appearance was… vaguely threatening, and Phil briefly wondered if this was a good choice for the boys.  His fears were assuaged the moment the man spoke again.</p>
<p>“Niki!!!” he rushed forward scooping her up into a hug which she returned gratefully.  “Oh my goodness it’s been so long!  I’ve missed you!”  The man abruptly spun away, shouting back into the house.  “Skeppy!! Get down here you muffinhead!  Niki is here with Tommy and Tubbo and... are you Philza?” He turned back around “I saw the message that someone new had joined, but I don’t know if we’ve been introduced?”</p>
<p>“Hello, that’s right, I’m Philza, Tommy, Wilbur, and Techno’s father.” He stepped forward and gave a handshake which was returned warmly. </p>
<p>“Hello!  I’m Bad, or Badboyhalo, but lots of people call me Bbh.  Please, come on in!” The man stepped back into the house and invited them inside before again shouting at the stairs “SKepPy!”</p>
<p>A muffled “What!?” came from somewhere upstairs.</p>
<p>Philza was more focused on the boys as they all entered the home.  Tommy and Tubbo continued to cling together.  Philza found himself wanting to create space between them and Bad, but soon realized it wasn’t going to be necessary.  Despite his energetic greeting and enthusiasm, Phil noticed the hybrid giving the boys careful, concerned looks.  He led them into a huge living room, all the while staying in clear line of sight of the boys, and despite his constant chatter keeping his movements slow and direct. </p>
<p>“You guys sit down wherever, let me get some muffins!” As the man left the room the group settled down on the couches.  Expectedly, Tommy and Tubbo squished together on one end of a large couch.  Philza settled in beside Tommy but gave him some space, and Niki sat down in one of the easy chairs.  Moments later Bad returned with a tray of muffins, as he entered the room he called out a simple hello announcing his presence and walked the long way around the couches, so he was never directly behind the two boys.  Philza found himself giving the man a much more sincere smile now, he recognized how careful the other was being.  Bad first approached Niki who happily took a muffin off the tray with an appreciative smile.  The boys were next but Bad paused before approaching.</p>
<p>“Can I give you guys some muffins?” Phil watched the boys as they once again convened silently before Tubbo spoke up.</p>
<p>“Yes, please!”  Bad nodded and approached slowly, crouching to offer the tray so he wasn’t looming over them.  Somehow the man made it look natural and unforced.  Philza got a muffin and Bad moved to the other couch next to him, taking two muffins off the tray and setting one down on the end table before biting into his own.  Philza had only finished one bite when, glancing over at the boys, he noticed they had already inhaled theirs.  He winced internally, wondering when the last time they had eaten was.  He turned as Bad nudged him, already offering the tray.</p>
<p>“Now that I’ve got one put aside for Skeppy you two can have all the rest if you want.”  The boys’ eyes widened and Philza dutifully passed over the tray.</p>
<p>“They’re soooo good!” Tubbo mumbled through a mouthful of food.</p>
<p>“Yeah thanks big man!” Tommy agreed without making eye contact, but his gratitude was obviously sincere. </p>
<p>It was a few minutes later when someone came bouncing down the stairs and into the room.</p>
<p>“Hey guys” A smaller man in a bright blue hoodie, a matching beanie with a derpy face on it, and brightly colored sneakers practically pranced into the room.  Phil noted that, much like Bad had, he slowed down as he neared the couches and walked around in a wide arc.  Philza suspected Bad had pinged him a warning while he was in the kitchen.  The dark-haired man couldn’t seem to help himself when he reached the couch though, half jumping half rolling over the back of it to seat himself next to Bad.  If the scuff marks were anything to go by, Skeppy rarely sat down like a normal person. </p>
<p>As if by habit, Badboyhalo scolded his friend without looking.  “Skeppy, don’t jump on the couch!”</p>
<p>Skeppy only responded by sticking out his tongue, making his face oddly reminiscent of the one on his hat, and looking pointedly at the half-consumed muffin Bad was eating.  With a heavy sigh Bad reached over and retrieved the remaining muffin from the table, only to have it snatched by Skeppy before he could even offer it. </p>
<p>“Yesssssssss!  I was worried I was gonna have to move out again if you didn’t get one for me!”  Immediately the two devolved into good natured bickering, before Bad seemed to remember their guests.  He cleared his throat pointedly and softly jabbed Skeppy with his elbow, who gave an overly dramatic “OW!” before shutting up with Bad’s glare. </p>
<p>“So, what can we do to help you all?” Phil was shocked by how quickly Bad got to the heart of the issue.  No fussing around with formalities and small talk, he was ready to help any way he could.  And for once Skeppy also managed to put on a somewhat serious face, looking genuinely caring. </p>
<p>Niki spoke up for the group.  “Things have been… poor in Pogtopia lately.  It isn’t a good place to be right now.”  She looked over at the boys forlornly as she spoke, the two of which were clearly fighting off sleep, stomachs full, and content for the moment to relax comfortably.  “I wouldn’t ask this if it weren’t important, but we need somewhere safe to stay, and where no one will find us.  If this is too much, I understand, I was—”</p>
<p>“Of course you can stay here.” This time the smaller man spoke, leaning forward earnestly.  “We haven’t been really interacting with anyone else anyway, not since… ya know.” He trailed off glancing at the boys.  “Besides!! We’ve got plenty of space since Baldboyhalo here made me build a WHOLE extra floor!”</p>
<p>“Hey!  I thought you like my design!”</p>
<p>“Sure but quartz is heavy…..” He dragged the word out while collapsing dramatically against Bad on the couch.  The two began yet another quarrel.  Initially Phil was tense about how they seemed to argue over anything, but he quickly realized that’s just how they were.  Besides, Niki was just smiling at them with amusement and the boys were unbothered, so it would be fine. </p>
<p> </p>
<hr/>
<p> </p>
<p>Eventually the group migrated upstairs, to get everyone set up in their rooms for the evening.  There were indeed plenty of rooms, and everyone had their pick.  Tommy and Tubbo immediately settled upon a huge room with an enormous bed right in the center.  Phil understood why when he heard woops of laughter coming from the room, peering around the doorframe to see both boys jumping on the bed. </p>
<p>When Skeppy dashed past into the room Philza almost decked him reflexively, only stopped by the gentle hand Bad placed on his arm.  Philza watched nervously as Skeppy joined them in their antics, but to his relief there was no panic or stress.  In fact, the youthful man’s exuberance only made them laugh more, as he and Tommy started arguing about who was the bigger man, while jumping on the bed to gain height.  Philza noted appreciatively that while he goofed around with them, Skeppy was still being more than conscious of their mental state.  While jumping on the bed he managed to keep some distance, never approaching, and his arms stayed tucked into the kangaroo pocket of his hoodie.  Even when he dramatically fell off the bed and rolled to the wall, he didn’t immediately pull his arms out.  Instead waiting for a moment before slowly pushing himself back up, and then tucking them back into his pockets before rejoining the boys. </p>
<p>Eventually they tired themselves out.  Skeppy, sitting on the floor and leaning against the bed declared “Fine Tommy, I surrender”</p>
<p>“I win bitch boy!”</p>
<p>“Language!”</p>
<p>This exchange had them rolling in fits of laughter again, even Phil and Niki unable to control themselves.  As things calmed down Philza noticed Bad typing on his communicator beside him.  As soon as he stopped, Skeppy’s communicator pinged.  The man read the message, then looked up at Bad, something thoughtful passing between them that Phil couldn’t translate. </p>
<p>“I’m gonna go get something” Skeppy announced as a warning before hopping up to his feet and out of the room.</p>
<p> While he was gone Badboyhalo started fussing about, showing them where the extra blankets were, where the bathroom was, and even a small chest filled with snacks for if they got hungry.  Finally, the horned hybrid pulled up the blankets hanging off the side of the bed, indicating to the runes inscribed on the frame.  Philza was pleased to see two sets of respawn runes there, meaning both Tommy and Tubbo would have their spawn points set here once they stayed the night.  Even though Phil was confident in his ability to keep them safe, it was still nice to know their spawn wouldn’t be in that ravine anymore.</p>
<p>The boys had been given nearly the whole tour when Skeppy returned carrying a darkly colored chest with a glowing eye on the top.  Everyone except Bad stared in confusion when Skeppy set the ender chest on the ground and started rummaging through it.  After a moment he seemed to find what he was looking for.</p>
<p>“Tommy, I think this is yours.” The slight man stood up and held out a disk with a bright green center towards Tommy.  Both Tommy and Tubbo’s eyes grew wide, tour long forgotten.  Tommy reached out hesitantly.</p>
<p>“Is this…?”</p>
<p>“Yep!  That’s Cat!  The real deal” Tommy’s hand closed around the disk with something approaching reverence. </p>
<p>“Really?  You’re just, giving it to me?” Tommy’s voice was filled with disbelief, he stared at the disk, as if afraid it would vanish if he took his eyes off it for even a second. </p>
<p>“Yeah, I mean, we had it for like political reasons or something.  But that doesn’t really seem to matter anymore.  It’s yours.” Skeppy took a step back from the boys, indicating as clearly as possible he wasn’t going to snatch it back.  Tommy continued to stare unbelieving. </p>
<p>“Would you like to play it?” Badboyhalo spoke up softly from the side of the room, indicating to a jukebox near the bed.  When Tommy finally looked up, Phil saw his eyes were filled with tears.  He nodded silently, carefully moving over and sliding the disk into the box.  When the first notes rang out the last traces of Tommy’s composure crumpled.  Huge tears poured down his face.  Philza moved towards him intending to provide comfort, only to stop in his tracks when he realized the boy was smiling.  A huge genuine smile stretched across his face, mirrored by Tubbo next two him.  Now both boys were weeping, and a glace around the room showed no dry eyes to be had.  Even Bad and Skeppy were wiping away tears at the sight.  Eventually the boys laid down in the bed, beyond exhausted, but feeling happy for what Phil suspected was the first night in a long while.  Everyone left the room, as the notes of Cat continued long into the night. </p>
<p> </p>
<hr/>
<p> </p>
<p>Philza had someone else to visit tonight, so before leaving he made sure the boys were okay staying here without him.  They both agreed that they felt fine doing so, Niki would be there after all.  Philza couldn’t help but leave Bad and Skeppy with a few strict instructions, he was still a father after all.  No closing the bedroom door, no hugging Tubbo if he had a nightmare, no sudden loud noises, and a few other things he had learned over the course of the day.  Both men agreed to every term sincerely, so Philza felt comfortable as he stepped out the door into the darkening evening. </p>
<p>He tapped at his communicator pensively, walking up the path towards the place Tommy had pointed out as his old house and embassy.  He didn’t have to wait too long for a response. </p>
<p>
  <strong>&lt;Technoblade&gt; Yeah, Wilbur is furious.  But I can get away.  Nothing he can do about it anyway.</strong>
</p>
<p>
  <strong>&lt;Philza&gt; Where do you want to talk</strong>
</p>
<p>
  <strong>&lt;Technoblade&gt; do we have to?  You know social conversations aren’t exactly my strong suit</strong>
</p>
<p>
  <strong>&lt;Philza&gt; Yes, we are going to talk.  </strong>
</p>
<p>
  <strong>&lt;Technoblade&gt; alright I’ll come get you and bring you to my base, human gps on the way.</strong>
</p>
<p>Phil sighed heavily.  He wanted to approach all his sons with compassion and understanding.  But seeing Tubbo, how much it had hurt him, he was finding it hard not to be angry.  He focused on taking deep breaths as he waited.  He would hear Techno out, then he could decide how angry to be.</p>
<p>Philza wanted to understand what had happened, and he needed Techno’s perspective.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Bad and Skeppy!! Even though this chapter is short, writing those two is so much fun! <br/>I'm hyped for the next couple chapters as well... sounds like we are going to hear from Techno again, I wonder how Philza will take everything?</p>
<p>Also, if you were interested, Bad's horns are shaped like those of a 'Common Eland' (which is a type of antelope)<br/>Except smaller and slimmer, and dark black and grey in color.  <br/>Just a fun fact!<br/>Thanks for reading, I hope you enjoyed this chapter as much as I enjoyed writing it! <br/>--R&amp;T</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0006"><h2>6. Listen to my heart</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Philza visits Technoblade<br/>The two have a long talk</p>
          </blockquote><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>This isn't an easy conversation for anyone.  </p>
<p>TW: Panic, referenced violence, anxiety, reference to threats of torture, reference to abuse, reference to manipulation</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Techno led Philza down into his own little base.  It was small, but it was where he felt most comfortable recently, so no better place for the unpleasant conversation they were about to have.  There wasn’t much in the way of furnishings, so Techno offered Phil the single chair while he sat on the edge of his bed.  A glance up showed him that Philza’s face was still set in a grim line, like it had been since he picked him up from the old embassy.  Techno had been dreading this conversation.  He knew he had messed up.  When he settled himself down, he didn’t even bother to meet Philza’s eyes, opting to stare at his hands in his lap instead.</p>
<p>“Alright Techno, let’s hear it.” Techno continued to fidget nervously, completely unsure of where to begin.  Philza took a deep breath across the room, then helpfully provided more guidance.  “Start with the events leading up to the festival.  We won’t talk about that just yet, though I will expect an explanation.”</p>
<p>“I joined up when Wilbur and Tommy got exiled, sounded like it was them against the world and tearing down governments is one of my favorite hobbies.”  This part was easy enough, just keep talking.  Keep the ball rolling.  “I noticed that Wilbur had started to get a little, intense, but I didn’t see the issue at first.  I mean, I support anarchy and that seemed to be the path he was headed down.”  Another deep breath, he glanced up at Philza.  His adoptive father was watching him, clearly listening carefully, no judgement on his face.  Not yet at least.</p>
<p>“Admittedly, I also wasn’t around a lot.  Had to get geared up.”  Technoblade stopped talking.  Next was the festival.  He really, really didn’t want to talk about it.  He didn’t want to see the look on Philza’s face change to disgust, or worse fear.  He didn’t want another person to look at him like a monster.  I mean sure, he liked it when his enemies saw him that way, fear is a good battle tactic.  But not his family.  Never his family. </p>
<p>“Alright Techno, walk me through the day of the festival”</p>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>
<hr/>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>
<p>As Phil watched his son squirm and avoid his gaze, he felt a bit of relief.  If Techno didn’t feel any remorse about what he had done, this they would be having a whole different conversation.  But clearly the piglin hybrid was uncomfortable talking about it, belaying some sort of regret. </p>
<p>Techno continued, explaining the events dispassionately, until he got to the speeches. </p>
<p>“Tubbo gave his speech then, it was a good speech all things considered.  But when he finished Schlatt started acting all sinister.  He had rigged the stage with a miniature cell ready to pop up at the flick of a switch and he practically tossed Tubbo in there.”  The warrior paused, thinking about how to explain the next events of the night. </p>
<p>“Phil this was planned, Schlatt probably knew about Tubbo before the festival was even announced.  It was always intended to be an execution.”  Philza gasped and clenched his fists tightly.  That bastard made a kid organize a celebration for his own murder.  This hadn’t dawned on Phil until Techno laid it out plainly for him, and he couldn’t help but wonder if the boys knew. </p>
<p>“He called me up to the stage, I didn’t want to, but there were guards around me.  What was I supposed to do, fight an entire nation essentially unprovoked?  When I got up there it was so loud Phil.  I kept checking my communicator, I swear, I thought Wilbur was gonna pull out some over the top plan, like he always does… But I never got any messages.”  Despite knowing how this ended, Phil was already emphasizing with his son’s predicament.  Technoblade had always struggled in high stress situations that didn’t involve fighting.  This sort of thing, stuck on a stage in front of everyone, was practically his worst nightmare realized. </p>
<p>“I think I could’ve still found a way to get us out of that mess, but, Schlatt had another thing up his sleeve.  He, he gave me an ultimatum.”  Philza watched as Techno’s carefully constructed facade of indifference began to crack.  Techno stood up abruptly, as if he couldn’t bear to sit still a moment longer.  He paced to the other side of the room facing away from Phil. </p>
<p>“He said I had two minutes to kill him or else, he was going to take him away he…”  Philza watched his son’s shoulders heave up and down before he suddenly spun around to face him.</p>
<p>“He was going to TORTURE him Phil!”  Techno sat down hard on the floor.  Philza saw his body trembling.  “He had the means to do it, he had it all set up so that if I made any fuss, he could take Tubbo away before I could get him to safety.  I should’ve tried Phil, but I couldn’t be certain, I couldn’t take the risk that if I lost him, I wouldn’t be able to find him again.”  The warriors voice somehow remained monotone, but he was visibly shaking now.  Phil was furious, but he had to take care of his son.  He crossed the room, Techno typically didn’t appreciate physical comfort, so Philza opted to take a heavy blanket off the bed and drape it across his shoulders.  Just like he had done when Techno was a child, scared of the overworld.  He seated himself on the floor across from Techno and waited for the rest of the story to come.  </p>
<p>“It was so loud Phil” Techno’s voice was soft.  “I didn’t know what to do.  I, I tried to use my sword.  Tubbo walked right up to the fence when I called him but when I saw his eyes, how much he trusted me, I hesitated.  It would’ve been so much better if I didn’t screw up there.”   Techno was staring holes in the floor, determined to get this over with. </p>
<p>“I panicked Phil.  It was too loud, and everyone was telling me what to do, except the people that mattered.  I just knew, I knew I couldn’t let Schlatt get what he wanted.  I couldn’t let Tubbo experience that.  So, I shot him.  I shot him in the chest with a firework and… I still failed Phil.  He didn’t even die immediately.  I still made him suffer.”  Phil rested a hand on Techno’s knee carefully, not stopping him, just being a reassuring presence. </p>
<p>“Since then I can think of dozens of different ways I could’ve gotten out of there.  There were so many options, but in the moment I… I’m sorry Phil.  I haven’t even been able to tell him that, because the kid can’t bear to be around me.  And I don’t blame him after what happened.”  Techno finally fell silent.  Shoulders still shaking, he finally managed to look up and meet Philza’s eyes.  Where he expected to see anger, hate, and fear he was surprised to see compassion.  He was so relieved that he almost lost control of the tears that had been threatening to spill.  Almost. </p>
<p>“You were given an impossible choice mate; you clearly didn’t want to hurt him.  I know that, and he knows it too, that doesn’t mean it’s not going to be a long time before he is comfortable being around you but…  You, you did the best you could do in the moment.”  Phil finally offered his thoughts.  All the anger he had felt toward Techno when viewing Tubbo’s injuries had melted away.  Well no, not melted away, more like switched targets. </p>
<p>Techno was given an impossible choice, Tubbo was hurt, and Schlatt was going to pay. </p>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>
<hr/>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>
<p>Techno was beyond relieved to see that his father wasn’t angry at him, that he wasn’t looking at him with the horror and disgust he had expected.  He wanted nothing more in that moment then to just stop talking, to let things run their course from here.  But none of this was why Techno had messaged him.  It was part of it, but there was so much more, more blood and guilt on Techno’s rough hands he hadn’t yet shared.  He knew he had to face it.  So, he pulled the blanket a little tighter around himself, and he continued. </p>
<p>“That’s not the end of the story Phil.  There’s more that’s happened since then that you need to know about.”</p>
<p>Phil looked up, unsurprised, patiently meeting his eyes.</p>
<p>“The boys told me a little, they said Wilbur has been acting strange.”</p>
<p>“It’s a little more than strange Phil.  Wilbur has been downright insane since the festival.  Probably since before.”  Techno shifted uncomfortably.  Second verse, same as the first.  Time to bare his sins before his father, and he knew the next bit really would make him angry.  He braced himself.</p>
<p>“I first noticed right after the festival, I got everyone out of there by the way.  When we got back to Pogtopia Tubbo had just respawned.  I just wanted to see him, but obviously that wasn’t a good choice right after I killed him.  In my defense I was tired.”</p>
<p>Philza frowned, but nodded for him to continue.</p>
<p>“So Tommy came running up and started shouting at me, calling me a traitor and chewing me out for killing Tubbo, which again, from his perspective, is fair.  I tried to defend myself a little, tried to explain what happened, but he wouldn’t listen for a second.  He was just shouting and shouting about wanting me gone and everything.  Before I knew what was going on Wilbur had dragged us both down to this hole in the ground.  Kept calling it ‘the Pit’ and telling us we needed to fight each other.”  Without looking Technoblade could feel Philza’s gaze on him hardening.  He had gotten this far though, might as well finish the story.</p>
<p>“We weren’t going to, but Wilbur kept riling Tommy up, telling him to think about what I did to Tubbo and telling him he had to fight me.  I… I was getting angry too.  I just, no one would listen to me!  And more than that, they left me on that stage with no guidance, and now they were blaming me alone for what happened?  They didn’t even try to find a way out!  It’s not like they don’t know how bad social situations are for me!  I never was even given a chance to tell them what Schlatt had planned.  So, when Tommy took a swing at me… I fought back.” </p>
<p>“I assume you won.”  Philza’s disappointment was palatable.</p>
<p>“You could say that.  I beat the kid bloody Phil.  Then I gave him some speech about ‘the universal language of violence’ like I didn’t even care.  I really do regret it Phil.  I mean, there’re loads of time I’ve wanted to smack that kid some sense, but not like that.  Not like that.”  The air in the room was chilled.  The silence stretched out for too long with Techno deliberately staring at the floor before he finally heard Philza take a deep breath.</p>
<p>“You’re right to fucking regret it.  You messed up, but it sounds like you know it at least.  That doesn’t fix anything, but it’s a start.” Phil had never been one to dance around hard truths.  But Techno heard the offer in his words.  Philza had said ‘it’s a start’ meaning he believed there was a way for Techno to make this right somehow.  Because it was Philza, Techno knew he meant it.  This time he did have to hide the tears that streaked down his face. </p>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>
<hr/>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>
<p>Philza couldn’t help but sigh heavily.  This was so very in character for both Techno and Tommy.  In fact, he would have been more surprised if those two <em>hadn’t </em>gotten in a physical confrontation since the festival.  Still, that didn’t make it right.  At least Techno seemed to know that.  The part of this that still had Philza puzzled was his eldest son’s involvement. </p>
<p>“You’re telling me that Wilbur encouraged the two of you to fight?”  He was careful to make his voice not one of disbelief, he had heard more than enough in the last 24 hours to support this claim.  But he desperately needed more information.</p>
<p>“Yeah, he was pretty adamant about the whole thing.  It was weird, though, I was too caught up at the time to really think about it.  But I probably wouldn’t have called you over if that were the end of things.” Techno admitted this ruefully, acknowledging his own resistance to outside help. </p>
<p>“Then why did you call me Tech?”  Philza used the nickname unconsciously, and finally Techno met his eyes again.</p>
<p>“I suspect, I think Wilbur hasn’t been treating the boys right.”</p>
<p>This was a huge accusation, had it come from anyone other than his son he would have challenged them on the spot.  Yet Techno sat in front of him, looking as distraught as Philza had ever seen him. </p>
<p>“Explain.”</p>
<p>“Well for one I think he’s probably been withholding food from them.  I don’t have proof, but while you were all gone, I checked around, and the food storage and the farms are locked up tight.  When he got back, I asked about it, and he admitted to having the only key on his person.”  If this was what Techno started with… a deep feeling of dread settled in the older man’s stomach. </p>
<p>“But yesterday I saw something bad Phil.  I suppose the boys had slept in too late or something, not sure how they’re supposed to tell in that dark ravine anyway, and Wilbur deliberately caused Tubbo to have a panic attack.  Like it was some sick punishment or something!”</p>
<p>“What do you mean?”  Philza’s mind was beginning to form a picture, and he really didn’t like how it painted his eldest son.</p>
<p>“He poured a bunch of gunpowder in their room and lit it off.  Considering the fireworks… you can see how that would be… cruel.  It’s just cruel.”  Techno quieted, but he had more to say, even as reluctant as he obviously was.</p>
<p>“I don’t think this was the first time Phil.  The way Tommy reacted, normally I would’ve expected him to deck that smug look right off Wil’s face, but he seemed… he seemed scared Phil.  Like he knew if he didn’t do what Wilbur said, something worse was gonna happen to both of them.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>
<hr/>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>
<p>If Philza had been furious hearing about the events of the festival, he was absolutely livid now.  He had half a mind to charge down into Pogtopia and demand an explanation immediately.  Not that there was an explanation that could excuse any of what Techno was alluding to.  But as he looked at the trembling form in front of him, he knew he wasn’t finished here yet.  There would be plenty of time to deal with Wilbur later. </p>
<p>“It’s partially my fault Phil.  After the festival I just avoided that place, avoided them like the plague.  I knew Wilbur wasn’t in his right mind, but I barely even checked up on the boys.  I’m at least somewhat responsible for how bad things got.”  Philza acknowledged his son’s guilt with a nod and squeeze on the knee.  He wasn’t going to tell Techno that he was entirely blameless, because the warrior was right, it partially was his responsibility.  But he could offer encouragement.</p>
<p>“Well, nothing we can do about that now.  If you didn’t know about it, then you can’t be blamed for not stopping it, though, I am disappointed that you didn’t check up on them.  But who would have ever thought that Wil, Wil of all people could… could change like this?”  Philza shook his head roughly.  Clearing his thoughts. </p>
<p>“By all accounts they should have been perfectly safe with him.  I can hardly blame you for trusting your brother to be a decent person.”  Phil watched carefully as Techno nodded, some of the tension leaving his shoulders.</p>
<p>“Techno, maybe you can help me sort out, when I talked to the boys, they didn’t bring up any of this.  They talked about the festival and Wil acting strange, but they didn’t mention being mistreated by him.  I… I don’t understand why they wouldn’t tell me?”  Philza still found it hard to believe that Wilbur could do something like this.  He held on to hope that maybe it was all a big misunderstanding.  That Wilbur truly wouldn’t hurt his brother or Tubbo.  Even as he tried to come up with an explanation that didn’t incriminate Wilbur, pieces kept falling into place.  The way Tommy was so nervous to tell him about Tubbo’s triggers, perhaps afraid he would use them against him later.  How adamant Tommy was that he needed to finish his work before Wilbur came back.  How skinny both boys were.  As Philza’s mind raced Techno finally answered. </p>
<p>“Well… the festival was a while ago now.  They’ve probably had more time to think about that, though certainly not enough to process it with the way Wil runs them ragged.  And yes, I do know for a fact how hard he works them.  Besides… if he’s really been doing stuff as a sort of punishment, then they may think they deserve it.  They might not even be able to recognize that he’s been abusing them.”  Techno shrugged heavily.  “they’re not kids anymore, but they aren’t adults either, not by a long shot.”</p>
<p>“But!” Philza found himself protesting before he could even consider it.  “Tommy at least should know what a family should look like!  He should know how families are supposed to act with each other!! If I gave you all one thing, I tried to make it family, and…”</p>
<p>“The thing is Phil, Wilbur hasn’t seen this as being about family for a long time.  He sees it as war, and they are his soldiers.”</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Another shorter chapter, but Techno is back!  He finally gets to talk about everything...<br/>Poor Techno.... It's been a rough few weeks for him.</p>
<p>Thank you for reading! I'm having a blast writing this story, and huge thanks to everyone who comments, it honestly makes me smile so much to read them and see peoples reactions.  <br/>&lt;3<br/>--R&amp;T</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0007"><h2>7. Regrets and Recompences</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>It's a new day and things are looking brighter.<br/>Philza wants to learn more of the story, are Tommy and Tubbo ready to tell him?</p>
          </blockquote><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Woo! New chapter!<br/>We've got another flashback in this one to Pogtopia, so discretion advised.</p><p>TW: Panic attacks, Anxiety, Manipulation, Emotional abuse, threats, cruelty, violence</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Badboyhalo had woken up early.  Or rather, he never managed to fall back asleep after waking up to screaming in the middle of the night.  As Philza had warned, Tubbo had woken up with nightmares at some point and had to be slowly brought back to reality.  Bad and Skeppy had both jolted awake in their beds.  Bad went upstairs to check on the boys, not entering the room when he saw Niki and Tommy already beside Tubbo on the bed.  He had heeded Philza’s warnings to the letter, and he could tell they had it under control.  It made his heart ache to realize just how used to it they all were. </p><p>Skeppy on the other hand was practically manic.  He had been silently seething that evening after seeing the poor state the boys were in.  Bad hadn’t seen his friend this angry since he told him about the festival.  Bad was grateful Skeppy hadn’t attended the event, though he had rushed home from his expedition upon seeing all the deaths on his communicator.  Bad only just managed to convince him not to go after Technoblade himself, for all the good that would do.  Best not to have them both hurting from respawn. </p><p>As he prepared a late breakfast and reflected on things, Bad automatically started rubbing the scar on his side.  His death had been so sudden that it wasn’t all that painful.  He suspected the same went for most people in the audience.  After all, no one expected Techno to start shooting wildly into the crowd.  Although no one expected the ‘celebration of democracy’ to turn into an execution either.  Bad had even been killed by a piece of shrapnel from the explosions, so he had died before he had any real burns to speak of. </p><p>No, the worst part of that respawn by far wasn’t the pain.  It wasn’t even the panic that invariably sets in while you are dying.  It was watching Tubbo get shot, over and over again.  Since it was nearly the last thing he saw before he died, those experiences ended up as part of the respawn. </p><p>Though the friendly man would never say it aloud, he rather thought it was a fitting bit of poetic justice for the audience.  Watch a boy die, fine!  Watch it again and again for an eternity while you sit in painful purgatory.   </p><p>During the festival Bad had seen Tommy and Wilbur on top of a nearby building.  Obviously, he hadn’t called them out, he never held any real affection for Manburg.  So when things started to go south on stage he just assumed they had a plan.  Like so many others he just waited for someone else to act.  Bad was determined to do his best to make up for that mistake in the coming days, though he knew nothing could ever undo it. </p><p>Skeppy bounded down the stairs and into the kitchen, breaking Badboyhalo out of his thoughts. </p><p>“You should put that away before the boys wake up.” Bad gestured to the sword still hanging on Skeppy’s side from the night before.  While Bad had checked on the boys during the night, his best friend couldn’t bear to sit uselessly by.  So he had donned his sword and patrolled the whole house, avoiding the upstairs bedrooms of course, but thoroughly checking for… Bad didn’t know what Skeppy had been protecting them from, but he appreciated his friends instincts none the less.</p><p>“You’re right, I’ll be right back!” And Skeppy was gone back up the stairs as fast as he had entered. </p><p>“Geppy be quiet!!” Bad shouted towards him as he practically stomped back down the stairs.</p><p>“You’re the one shouting!! Shouldn’t you be quiet?” As the two started arguing Bad continued to focus on breakfast.  Their bickering was so second nature by this point that he could’ve kept it up while asleep, and had, when Skeppy disagreed with something he said while sleeptalking.  Due to this Bad only became aware that perhaps they had been talking a little loudly when two sets of soft footsteps could be heard coming down the stairs.  He wasn’t going to admit that to Skeppy though.</p><p>“Now look what you’ve done Skeppy!  You woke them up!”</p><p>“ME!!?!!”</p><p>Bad ignored his friend’s indignant protests entirely.  He met the boys out in the living room, where he had moved the dining table earlier in the morning.  He guessed that Tubbo might be more comfortable in the larger, familiar room. </p><p>“Good morning!  Sorry about Skeppy’s rude behavior, he’s always like this in the morning.”  Bad heard a squawk of protest from the kitchen.  “If you want to sit down, I have breakfast ready!”  As Bad set the table he looked at the boys appraisingly from the corners of his eyes.  He was pleased to note they both looked far less exhausted than the previous day, and he hummed happily when he noticed they had used the bathroom to clean themselves up some.  He continued humming as he went to retrieve the food from the kitchen, only stopping as he saw Skeppy about to dash into the other room.</p><p>“Remember Skeppy, gentle.” Bad grabbed the back of his friend's hood reflexively, which elicited another undignified squawk, but rather than the usual arguments his chiding would have started, Skeppy only nodded seriously.  He put back on his usual grin before entering the other room.</p><p>When Bad returned with several heaping platers of food balanced precariously, he was delighted to see Niki had made her way down to join them.  He also gave Skeppy a happy smile when he saw where the other man had seated himself.  Skeppy had left a couple seats between himself and the boys, even leaving a spot between him and Niki for Bad!</p><p>“Alright, dig in!”  Bad had managed to get all the trays on the table without incident, to literally everyone’s surprise, and sat down himself.  When he looked up both boys were staring wide eyed at the food.  Tubbo had his mouth hanging open and Bad thought he saw Tommy drooling a little.  But neither one reached out a hand for anything.  They sat completely still.  Even Skeppy paused before serving himself to watch them. </p><p>“You all can have as much as you want.” Bad tried to reassure them, but the boys didn’t budge.  Okay, new plan then.  They were obviously hungry, and Bad wasn’t ready to think about why they wouldn’t touch the food in front of them.  (He knew it couldn’t be his cooking, he was a great cook, even Skeppy said so.)</p><p>“Everyone pass me your plates!” Bad looked at Skeppy significantly, hoping he would get the message.  Fortunately, Skeppy didn’t so much as blink, passing his plate like it was the most normal thing in the world.  Bad took a moment to appreciate his best friend, but just a moment.  He started loading the plates with generous helpings of food.  Once the first plate had been filled to his satisfaction he handed it to Niki, with instructions to pass it down the table.  Her smile of gratitude would fill him for the rest of the day.  She also hadn’t reached for the food. </p><p>The moment the boys had their hands on a filled plate, it was like a switch had been flipped.  They started devouring the food so fast Bad was a little afraid they would choke.  Rather than start eating himself he grabbed another pair of plates from the kitchen, and by the time the boys had cleared their plates he had two more ready, heaped with pancakes, eggs, and of course, muffins. </p><p>The little system may have looked silly to an outside observer.  But that didn’t matter to anyone there.  When the boys had finally eaten their fill and promptly passed out on the couch, Bad couldn’t help but smile triumphantly.  And for once Skeppy didn’t contest it. </p><p> </p><p> </p>
<hr/><p> </p><p> </p><p>Philza had decided to stay the night with Techno.  By the time they had finished talking it was long after dark, and since Phil had no gear to speak of on the server, it wouldn’t be safe for him to traverse unfamiliar ground back to the house.  He could have had Techno take him, but he thought the boys would feel more comfortable knowing that their location was a secret. </p><p>He had slept poorly.  The thought of Wilbur, his eldest son, going down such a dark path was troubling him into restlessness.  At some point Philza heard Techno get up and start moving around, so he followed suit. </p><p>The two exchanged sparse greetings while Techno prepared some sort of potato hash for breakfast.  Philza took the time to plan his day.  His first course of action was to go check in with Tommy and Tubbo.  He also wanted to talk to them again.  There was more information he needed from them before he would be ready to confront Wilbur.  He knew the boys had been exhausted, so he sent them each a message asking if they were up. </p><p>He and Techno ate in only partially uncomfortable silence.  Clearing the air last night seemed to have done Techno some good, Phil noted he was less sullen then the previous day.  Phil also noticed Techno meeting his eyes more.  It was a good sign. </p><p>After breakfast, the boys still hadn’t responded.  Philza started to move around the small base nervously before eventually messaging Niki as well.  Another hour passed.  When Phil still didn’t have any responses, his anxiety was raging.  He left the base in a hurry, and messaged Bad as he exited.</p><p>
  <strong>&lt;Philza&gt; Hey sorry to bother, but I’ve messaged the boys this morning and no one is responding.  Are they still asleep?</strong>
</p><p>
  <strong>&lt;Badboyhalo&gt; No everyone is up, I don’t know why they haven’t responded, but we are all just enjoying the sunshine outside.  </strong>
</p><p>Phil was still typing his next message when Bad seemed to read his concern.</p><p>
  <strong>&lt;Badboyhalo&gt; Everyone is doing as well as could be expected, right now they are chasing Skeppy around with sticks.  They’re safe Philza</strong>
</p><p>Phil was relieved.  He didn’t even realize he had been jogging through the woods until he slowed down.</p><p>Sure enough, when Philza got in sight of the house he could see three figures running around the front yard.  In the light of day the house looked even more spectacular.  The front yard was ringed in more quartz and the walkway had a statue on either side.  Philza would’ve stopped to admire the design if he didn’t have more important things on his mind.  As he reached the yard a blue clad figured hurled out from behind one of the statues and dashed behind him.</p><p>“Protect me!! They’ve got sticks!” Skeppy hid behind him as the two boys came round the corner.</p><p>“Get back here Skeppy, we’re gonna troll you!” Tommy was in the lead, but Tubbo was close behind as always. </p><p>“Good morning boys.”  The boys halted in front of Philza and shared a mischievous grin.  Phil tried to give them a disapproving look, but it was so good to see them smiling he couldn’t help but return it.  They, unfortunately for Skeppy, took this as tacit approval to continue their antics and immediately dashed around him.  Skeppy yelped and was once again on the run. </p><p>“When you’re done with him come back to the house okay?” Phil could only call after the group, shaking his head and chucking.  It was good to see them acting their age, if only for a bit.  He got to the house where Niki and Bad were lounging on the front lawn.  Niki was following their chase with her eyes and giggling every time the boys almost caught up.  Bad was shouting not-so-helpful advice at Skeppy.</p><p>“Don’t let them catch you!”</p><p>“What do you think I’m doing?”</p><p>When Phil finally was close enough for a greeting, he saw something serious pass across the hybrid’s face.  The tall man hopped up to his feet and looked ready to say something, when they heard a splash.  Phil spun to see Skeppy sitting in the exact center of the shallow pool in the front yard.  As if pointedly ignoring the group, Phil felt a tap on his shoulder.</p><p>“Can I speak to you in private for a minute?” The horned hybrid looked serious despite the ridiculous scene unfolding in front of him.  Philza immediately followed him back into the house, where they sat on the couches in the same arrangement as the previous night.  Despite having asked him in here, Bad seemed unwilling to start the conversation.  He wrapped his arms around him uncomfortably.</p><p>“What did you need to talk to me about?” Phil finally broke the silence.</p><p>“I just thought you should know, well you might already know but, at breakfast the boys and Niki were… they seemed nervous about eating.”  Bad floundered on without seeming to take a breath.  “When I put all the food out they wouldn’t touch it, I tried to tell them it was okay and they seemed really hungry, but they wouldn’t eat until I put it on their plates for them.  Niki eventually started serving herself, but the boys were like that the whole meal.” Finally, Badboyhalo slowed down.  “I don’t know why, and maybe it’s not important, but it seemed significant.”</p><p>Philza rested a hand on the man’s shoulder, forcing him to make eye contact.  “Thank you Bad.  That was something I needed to know.  I’m going to have a talk with the boys about some concerns once they’re back inside.”  The hybrid’s face was hard to read, but Phil could tell by the slump of his shoulders he was relived. </p><p>It didn’t take long for Tommy, Tubbo, and a drenched Skeppy to return to the house.  The boys were still chattering about trolling, until Skeppy grinned ear to ear, and proceeded to shake himself like a dog.  Water splashed everywhere and both boys yelped in surprise.</p><p>“Who got trolled now?” Skeppy knew better then to wait for an answer, sprinting up the stairs and away from the boys who looked ready to jump him.  Phil kindly interceded on the dark-haired man’s behalf.</p><p>“Boys, I need to talk to you a bit.”  Tommy led the way over towards the couches, wiping water off his face with annoyance. </p><p>“Would you two be more comfortable here or in your room upstairs?”  The boys held another silent conversation. </p><p>“I’m going upstairs anyway, if that makes a difference.” Bad was already standing up and moving away from the couches.  The boys came to their agreement. </p><p>“Down here is good.”  Tubbo offered and both boys hopped over the couch Bad had been sitting on, leaping over the back of it.  Clearly they were attempting to mimic Skeppy’s casual grace from the previous night.  All they succeeded in doing was bonking heads and looking like a tangled mess as they scrambled into a sitting position.  After a minute of bickering about which one of them was to blame, they fell silent and looked at Phil expectantly.  He decided to start with the easiest question.</p><p>“I messaged you both this morning a few times, did you not get the messages?”  Upon seeing the trepidation on their faces, he tried to soothe their concerns.  “It’s okay if you didn’t, or if you did and just didn’t want to respond.  I’m not going to be mad if you didn’t want to message me.”</p><p>Tommy shook his head forcefully, “No, it’s not that.” But then the blond tightened his shoulders, shutting down all further conversation.  Tubbo had turned his head away, looking towards the opposite wall.</p><p>Phil was so concerned, thinking that he had screwed up any hope of getting them to talk, that he didn’t even hear Niki enter the room.</p><p>“Wil took them away.” The voice rang out from behind Philza, and both boys jolted harshly, panic in their eyes.</p><p>“What?” Phil couldn’t believe what he was hearing.  Niki crossed the room and sat on the easy chair before continuing.</p><p>“Wilbur took all of our communicators away.  He said it was so we couldn’t betray him, but I think he just wanted control.”  Her voice wavered, incredible sadness filling every note.  When Philza turned to look back at the boys, he knew it was true.  Both Tommy and Tubbo seemed to have shrunk into the couch, looking to all the world like they were hiding from something. </p><p>“We were instructed not to tell anyone as well.  That would also mean we were plotting against him, so far as he was concerned.” As Niki continued the boys only got more frantic, Tubbo started flicking his eyes around as if he were looking for an escape, and Tommy seemed on the verge of outright panic.  Philza couldn’t in good conscience keep them here any longer.</p><p>“Tommy, Tubbo, would you two like to go up to your room?  I think I should talk to Niki for a bit anyway.”  The boys erupted as if shot from a cannon and were gone before he could finish the sentence.  Phil sighed heavily.  His heart ached for how scared they were, even with him in the room.</p><p>“It’s not your fault Phil” tears sparkled in the women’s eyes “They’ve been living in fear for so long, it’s going to take even longer to convince them that they’re safe.”</p><p> </p><p> </p>
<hr/><p> </p><p> </p><p>“I assume you will want to talk to Wilbur soon.  But there are some things you need to know from the past few weeks that… that I don’t think the boys are ready to talk about yet.”  Philza only nodded mutely in response.  He was blindsided, taking someone’s communicator, for any reason, was a base violation of everything he had ever tried to teach his sons.  Taking someone’s communicator left them helpless and isolated; without it they couldn’t communicate when they were in danger or determine their coordinates if they got lost.  Finally, he sighed.</p><p>“Yes Niki, it would be helpful if you could provide some insight.  Techno had his suspicions, but by his own admission he hasn’t been around much.” </p><p>“No, no he hasn’t.”  The first trace of bitterness could be heard in the woman’s voice.  “Wilbur has been paranoid.  He thinks everyone is going to betray him.  If you do something he interprets as going against him he will… he will treat you like he thinks a traitor deserves.  But disagreeing with him has become equivalent to betraying his trust as well.”  Niki faltered.  “We’ve had to walk on eggshells, but even then, it’s not enough.”</p><p>“I’m sorry to ask this of you Niki, but do you have any specific examples you feel comfortable sharing?”  Phil really did hate to ask.  He could tell it was painful for her to even think about.  She lowered her head, letting her long hair obscure her face.</p><p>“Yes.  I have far too many examples.  Unfortunately, most of them involve the boys.  I was spared the brunt of it, probably because Wil never really saw me as one of his soldiers.”  Niki paused thoughtfully.  “He had a twisted method to his madness.”</p><p> </p><p> </p>
<hr/><p> </p><p> </p><p>Niki had only been in Pogtopia for a few days when she first saw an example of Wil’s newfound cruelty.  All things considered; the boys did seem happy to be together.  They had been working on a new railway tunnel and chattering when Wil interrupted.  </p><p>“Don’t you think you two should be focusing more on your work and less on your scheming?”  When he approached, both boys jumped to their feet.  Tommy started glancing around anxiously, but Tubbo didn’t sense the danger.  He looked more confused than anything when he answered.</p><p>“I don’t know what you mean Wilbur, we were just chatting, but we are almost done with clearing out this section!”  In an instant Wil was directly in front of the smaller boy, gripping his shoulders tightly.  He practically hissed at him.</p><p>“Sure you don’t Tubbo, if you’re so close then you can have dinner after this whole section is finished.”  Wil looked surprised when Tubbo ripped himself out of his arms and started whimpering in panic, crumpling to the floor.  Niki believed the lack of dinner was the intended threat, but even when Tommy started shouting aggressively the faintest trace of a smile could be seen across the elder’s face. </p><p>“Wil you can’t just grab him like that!”</p><p>“Oh, does that bother him?”  Wilbur’s voice was the epitome of forced innocence.  “Thanks for telling me Tommy, I’ll keep that in mind.”  For the next few days that seemed to be the end of the issue.  Things were tense, but nothing too unpleasant happened.  For a few days. </p><p> </p><p> </p>
<hr/><p> </p><p> </p><p>Niki’s first indication of something going poorly in the canyon that day was the scraping of metal, a cracking sound, and Tommy cursing loudly.  She had been upstairs, polishing armor at Wilbur’s request.  She knew the boys had been tasked with cleaning the meager weapon supply that Pogtopia possessed, so when she glanced over the railing to see Tommy holding a broken diamond sword she wasn’t exactly surprised.  She also wasn’t surprised to see Wil storming into the main room. </p><p>“What is going on in here?” Wilbur was clearly upset, throwing his hands up in exasperation.  Upon seeing the shattered sword his whole demeanor stiffened.</p><p>“I’m sorry Wil, it was brittle, and it just snapped when I was trying to clean it off.  I know we don’t have lots of weapons, but I will replace it!  I can stay down mining all night if you want.”  Tommy’s voice had more than a hint of desperation.  He was trying to placate Wilbur. </p><p>“No, no Tommy, it’s alright.”  Wilbur strolled towards both boys, though his tone was light, his body language was screaming threats.  Even Niki could see it from the walkway.  “I don’t blame <em>you</em> Tommy.  After all, Tubbo is here distracting you.”  Wilbur’s weight shifted and in a flurry of movement he managed to grab Tubbo’s shoulders tightly.</p><p>“Wilbur, let me go please, let me go… please Schlatt….”  Tubbo’s breath started to hitch up, his body recoiling in panic, desperately trying to twist from Wilbur’s grasp. </p><p>Wilbur didn’t hesitate in pushing the small boy up against the nearest stone wall, holding him there mercilessly while shouting in his face. </p><p>“You are here and now Tommy is breaking things!  Do you think I’m blind, striking us where we are weak aren’t you?  Once a traitor always a traitor huh?  Life too good with Schlatt?”  The whole thing only lasted a moment, but it felt like hours until Tommy finally managed to pry his brother off Tubbo, begging and pleading for him to leave his friend alone.  The moment Tubbo collapsed to the floor Wilbur turned on his heel and headed back to his office.  Seemingly done with the whole situation. </p><p>Niki rushed down the stairs intending to comfort the boys, but her anger got the better of her.  She pursued Wilbur down the hallway, grabbing his wrist before he made it to the office.</p><p>“What in the world was that Wil?”  Her voice was outraged.  She couldn’t comprehend what she had seen. </p><p>“Oh Niki!  Is that armor polished yet?”  He ignored her question, speaking as if he hadn’t just pushed around a traumatized child for a simple accident.</p><p>“Don’t ‘oh Niki’ me Wilbur Soot.  How could you do that to them?”</p><p>“Ah fine Niki you want an explanation, come take a seat.”  Wilbur entered his office and gestured to a chair in front of his desk.  He didn’t wait for a response before rounding the desk and sitting down in his own chair.</p><p>“Niki, have you ever heard about a king’s whipping boy?”  He continued on without pause.  “You see in some kingdoms the King would still be a child when he inherited the throne, and children need to be taught lessons like anyone else.  But naturally it was beyond heresy to even imagine punishing the King of the land.  So, they had a solution Niki, they would let the King maintain a close friend, some peasant child or lesser noble.  Then, whenever the child King needed to be punished, they would simply punish his friend in his stead.  It was a brilliant solution honestly, the young King would have to watch his friend endure for his mistakes, and that way he learned.  Do you see my point Niki?”</p><p>Niki was shaking her head in disbelief, silent tears running down her face.  This wasn’t the Wilbur she knew.  “No, Wil, no, don’t you dare say it.”</p><p>“Well Tommy has gotten all rebellious recently!  I had to find a way to make him listen!  Is that so bad?  I am still the president here and I need my people to respect me!”  Wilbur was on his feet, towering over Niki.  She watched his wild eyes, tried to peer into them, to find some vestige of the man she knew.  She came up empty. </p><p>“Wil you can’t do this.  This is wrong.”</p><p>“I don’t care Niki!  And I can do it!  Tommy won’t leave me, and Tubbo won’t leave Tommy.  So long as I have them both, I have control Niki!  This is my Pogtopia!  Mine to lead!”  He was practically raving now.  Pacing around the room, tossing papers at random while he ranted.  Niki stood.</p><p>“I’m leaving Wil.”</p><p>“Fine, you leave me too then!  Get out of here and go back to suffering under Schlatts rule!  Go back to your bakery and leave me, you traitor!”  Niki left the office, left the husk that claimed to be Wilbur, and cried. </p><p>But Niki didn’t leave Pogtopia.  She saw the boys still sitting in the ravine floor.  Tubbo still wasn’t back to reality, and Tommy looked broken.  She knew that despite all the lies, all the insanity Wilbur had thrown her way, one thing he said rang true. </p><p>Tommy wouldn’t leave Wilbur.  Tubbo wouldn’t leave Tommy.  And Niki couldn’t leave them alone with that monster. </p><p>So, she stayed.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>That chapter jumped around a little, but I decided to do it all at once rather than two really short ones.<br/>Niki is a hero and I love her.  </p><p>Thank you for reading and all the encouraging comments!  I've got the next couple chapters written, just need to finish editing so look forward to those soon.  I'm loving reading every comment you guys leave :D<br/>Hope you enjoyed this chapter<br/>-- R&amp;T</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0008"><h2>8. Can the lost always be found?</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Philza has heard enough, it's time to talk to his eldest son.<br/>Meanwhile Badboyhalo notices something odd about the boys, he is determined to help.</p>
          </blockquote><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>So, this is a big one story wise.</p>
<p>TW:  Panic attack, anxiety, injury, reference to abuse, violence, blood</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Philza’s eyes darkened the longer Niki spoke.  She only outlined a few events, but he sensed the trend. </p>
<p>“For a while they really did try to fight back.  Especially Tommy, but they learned that no matter what they did, Wilbur would find a way to make them pay for it later.  Whether it was by withholding food, or terrorizing Tubbo, he would make them pay.”  Niki looked drained.  Her whole body shook lightly, and tears continued to run silently down her face.  </p>
<p>“Niki, would you like a hug?”  Niki looked shocked, eyes widening as if…</p>
<p>“I… I thought you would be angry at me for saying such awful things about your son.”  She spit the words out, a trace of fear still on her tongue.</p>
<p>“No, no.  I’ve seen plenty of evidence to confirm what you have told me.  I am angry, but only at the ones responsible for this.  Niki, thank you for staying with the boys.  I know it cost you a lot, but I don’t know if they would be safe right now if it weren’t for you.  I can never thank you enough for sacrificing your own safety to help protect them.”  Now Niki was sobbing, Philza offered his arms again, and the young women practically fell into them. </p>
<p>“I didn’t do much, but thank you Philza.  Thank you for bringing me with you, and thank you for allowing me the peace of knowing the boys are safe now.”</p>
<p>“They are safe, you are all safe.  I promise.”  Niki eventually pulled herself away from Phil, smiling appreciatively.  She murmured that she needed to rest for a bit, before heading upstairs to her bedroom. </p>
<p>Once she was out of the room, Phil rested his head in his hands.  He believed her.  He didn’t want to.  He would never have imagined this.   But he believed her, he believed Techno, and he believed Tommy and Tubbo. </p>
<p>His son had gone far astray. </p>
<p>It was time to talk to Wilbur himself. </p>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>
<hr/>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>
<p>Badboyhalo was excellent at noticing things.  He noticed how his friend had discreetly donned a sword under his hoodie when he changed into dry clothes.  He noticed how Niki stared longingly at the kitchen through the door during breakfast.  And he noticed how Tommy and Tubbo always stood in the same arrangement, Tommy on the left, Tubbo on the right.  Sometimes acting on his observations was harder, but he tried to find ways.</p>
<p>When Philza left to visit Wilbur in Pogtopia, Bad asked Skeppy to keep an eye out around the house.  He smirked as his best friend dashed off, clearly relieved to have a task to do.  Bad offered Niki some baking supplies and use of the kitchen, suggesting the boys might like a snack, and his cakes simply couldn’t compare to her baking.  She seemed delighted and could be heard humming cheerfully as she prepared the batter.  The boys were a little trickier.  Before Philza left they both returned downstairs, and at Bad’s suggestion, were now hanging around by the pond under the Eiffel Tower. </p>
<p>As he had noticed earlier, regardless of what they were doing, Tommy stayed near Tubbo’s left side.  They had sat like that from the first night they arrived at his home.  The only time he had seen the arrangement shift was when they were chasing Skeppy around the house, and when Tommy ran to Phil to say a last goodbye before he left earlier that day.  Both times Tubbo immediately started showing signs of anxiety, he fidgeted, and started almost spinning in apparent efforts to keep everything in his line of sight that he could.  Initially, Bad had been reminded of something that had happened ages ago with Skeppy. </p>
<p>They had ended up in the unfortunate circumstance of fighting both Dream and Technoblade.  It was all about something stupid, Sapnap had convinced them to help retrieve his pet fish from Tommy.  If they had known who they would end up fighting they certainly wouldn’t have agreed to help, love of pets be muffined.  Reasoning aside they had both come out of that fight significantly worse for wear, though nothing that wouldn’t heal.  Skeppy however noticed an injury to one of his eyes that wasn’t fixed with application of a health pot.  It seemed like the injury was inside the eye and would need a few days and some regen potions to heal.  But for those days Skeppy was beyond jumpy.  Bad’s best friend was… excitable at the best of times, having his vision impaired on one side kept him practically crackling with nervous energy.  Eventually Bad committed to being next to him at all times until it healed, otherwise Skeppy would never sit still, constantly turning his head to check the missing side of his vision.  Though Skeppy had never admitted it, Bad knew he had appreciated the support. </p>
<p>There was one problem with applying this explanation to Tubbo; his eyes looked completely healthy.  Though he hardly ever sat still long enough for a good look, Bad was certain there was nothing amiss.  When Skeppy’s eye had been injured it was fogged over partially and didn’t track movement very well.  None of that could be said for Tubbo.  But something was definitely going on.  Bad had a theory, but he needed to test it.</p>
<p>Bad waited until the boys were facing away from him before calling out.  “Tubbo?”  He intentionally called out quieter than he might have otherwise, but still loud enough to be heard.  He watched carefully as a little dance played out.  First Tommy glanced at him, Tubbo didn’t even react.  Then Tommy lightly bumped Tubbo with his arm, and leaned next to him, even from across the yard Bad could see the blonds mouth moving.  Finally, Tubbo turned to face him, and responded.</p>
<p>“Yeah?”</p>
<p>“Don’t let Tommy kill any of my fish, okay?”  Bad had a response ready.  The whole exchange was quick enough to be unnoticeable if Bad hadn’t been specifically looking for it.  His suspicions were confirmed.</p>
<p>
  <strong>&lt;Badboyhalo&gt; Skeppy, do we have any ghast tears in storage?</strong>
</p>
<p>
  <strong>&lt;Skeppy&gt; yeah i thik so</strong>
</p>
<p>
  <strong>&lt;Skeppy&gt; shouuld be in the brwing room</strong>
</p>
<p>Bad nodded to himself, satisfied.  Not long after he began to smell the sweet scent of cake drifting through the open door and called the boys inside to get some.  While they were enjoying the treat, he took a detour into the brewing room.  Sure enough, they had three bottles, each containing a single ghast tear.  Additionally, there were already a couple of the potions he needed in storage, so he only set two more sets to brew.  It can’t hurt to be prepared. </p>
<p>“Hey Tubbo, Tommy too, would you two be willing to come with me to our brewing room for a bit?  I’ve got some potions that might help you two while you’re recovering.”  It was a vague explanation, but Bad hoped he had built up enough trust by this point for the boys to agree.  They looked at each other apprehensively, but Tubbo was the one to finally nod.</p>
<p>“Yeah!  Lead the way to the drugs!” </p>
<p>The brewing room was on the first floor, it also doubled as a makeshift infirmary, something Badboyhalo had insisted on when they built the house.  Skeppy had a tendency for trouble and there was no sense in tracking blood all over the place.  As they passed the front door Bad waved to Skeppy, who was sitting by the doorstep, having apparently tired himself out pacing round the exterior.  He stuck out his tongue out at Bad through the window and made a very indecent hand gesture at Tommy. </p>
<p>“Language!  Both of you!”  Tommy had, predictably, returned the gesture.</p>
<p>“Oh, how can you say language when we didn’t even speak anything?  How does that make sense?”  Tommy kept up his tirade until they reached the brewing room.  Bad gestured to the cots on one side, careful to enter first so he was never between them and the door.  Both boys hopped up onto the nearest cot, sitting and facing him apprehensively.  Bad took a deep breath.  He wasn’t good at talking around issues, so might as well get it out in the open.</p>
<p>“So, what’s going on with Tubbo’s ear?”  As he watched, Tommy and Tubbo grew wide eyed.  If they had looked apprehensive before, now they looked like scared animals, ready to bolt.  Bad deliberately stepped away from them and turned his back, kneeling to rummage through a barrel.  He knew exactly where the regeneration potions were, but might as well give them some space.  He deliberately counted to ten before he turned back around, still crouched.  He was pleasantly surprised to see that the boys had remained in the room.  Tommy had a death grip on Tubbo’s arm though, clearly ready to drag him out of there at the slightest provocation. </p>
<p>“I have got some regen potions that might help.  I can’t know for sure without seeing the injury, but if you would prefer to administer them yourself for now, I can tell you how.”  Bad presented the two glass bottles with swirling maroon liquid in an open palm. </p>
<p>Tommy snatched them immediately with his free hand, and started to move towards the door, almost falling when he realized Tubbo wasn’t moving along with him. </p>
<p>“Tubbo?”  Tommy looked concerned that his friend wasn’t following; Tubbo only stared at Bad.  Bad was perceptive enough to recognize that the brown-haired boy was waging an inner war.  He could only be patient.  Eventually one of the sides reigned victorious. </p>
<p>“Would you… would you look at it for me?”  Tubbo still looked ready to run, but his jaw was clenched tightly with resolve. </p>
<p>“Tubbo, are, are you sure?  I mean last time someone found out…”  Tommy was bouncing from foot to foot.  The tall boy was clearly fighting every instinct that told him to drag his friend away from the perceived danger.</p>
<p>“Yeah, I mean, he already knows right?  It can’t hurt to have him look at it.”  And with that, it seemed to be decided.  Tommy hesitantly rotated around, until he was on Tubbo’s right side, not impeding Bad’s ability to inspect the injury.  He still didn’t sit though, opting to hover over them both anxiously. </p>
<p>Bad approached slowly, he sat on the bed next to Tubbo rather than standing over him.  At every movement Tubbo flinched, but he didn’t run away. </p>
<p>“If you want me to stop, for any reason, tell me okay?  I promise I will stop immediately no questions asked.”  Tubbo nodded, before reluctantly turning his head away from Bad.  Bad saw his hands were shaking and knew to make this quick.</p>
<p>“Don’t worry big man, I’ll watch the language muffin for you.”  Tommy’s remark was mocking, but Tubbo did seem to relax a little. </p>
<p>“Alright, I’m going to push aside your hair now.  I won’t touch the ear yet; I’m just going to move your hair.”  Bad was as careful as possible, he had prepared himself for the injury, but he still had to bite his lip to avoid a startled cry.  The burns were worse than he suspected.  But the exterior of the ear wasn’t what he needed to see. </p>
<p>“Okay, now I’ve got to see inside the ear.  Could you lean your head to rest on your shoulder?  Good, yep, just like that.  I’m going to have to touch your ear now.  Is that okay?”  Bad looked up at Tommy, who nodded at him on behalf of Tubbo, who was fighting to keep his breathing steady.  Bad had slipped a couple other potions in his pockets as well, and he dipped his fingers in an instant healing pot before touching Tubbo.  Hopefully, this would prevent the still settling scars from hurting when he applied pressure.  He peered into the ear in silence for a full minute, making sure he understood the injury.  When Bad had finished he released his feather light grip, brushed Tubbo’s hair into place, and crossed back to the other side of the room. </p>
<p>“Okay, all done with that.”  Both boys looked relieved.  “So good news, though damaged, the internal structures all look basically intact.  So, with some regen potions and time we could see a large return of hearing.  Bad news, the hearing is likely never going to be perfect.  The tympanic membrane itself was slightly burned, and it won’t ever fully be recovered.”  Bad looked at the boys, trying to see how they would process this news.  To his astonishment, they didn’t seem to be upset, instead they looked surprised, and Tubbo was smiling even while his eyes filled with tears.</p>
<p>“Are you sure?  Wilbur said…”  Tommy spoke up, clearly in disbelief. </p>
<p>“Yeah, I know more about this stuff then that potato anyway.”  Tubbo was clearly relieved.  His tears were interlaced with smiles and nods as Bad laid out a treatment plan.  Tommy also felt relieved for his friend, but Bad could see a deep feeling of betrayal seething under the surface. </p>
<p>Tommy was beginning to see how deep the lies had gone.  He didn’t like what he was seeing.</p>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>
<hr/>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>
<p>Philza had been given some spare equipment by Skeppy before he left, which was good since the wooded areas around Pogtopia held more than a few hostile mobs avoiding the sunlight.  Even having known where the entrance was, Philza still had to try several times before he found the exact location.  It was well hidden; he’d give his sons that much credit.  Phil honestly was at a loss.  He knew he had to confront Wilbur, but he had no idea how this conversation would go.  Any other time Philza could have predicted a conversation with his son to the letter, but everything was different now.  He proceeded down the spiral staircase into the ravine.</p>
<p>“Wilbur.”  There was no movement or sound from the vast space below.  He continued down the walkways, calling out periodically.  He checked almost every room he came across, at this point he wouldn’t be surprised to find out Wilbur was hiding from him.  After all, his son certainly knew he was on the server but hadn’t messaged him once. </p>
<p>His heart dropped to his feet when he looked into the room Tommy and Tubbo had shared.  Philza couldn’t remember the last time he had felt this kind of blind anger and fear mixed together.  He retched as he surveyed the scene.  Someone had gone at the two beds with a sword or possibly ax.  Philza wasn’t interested in finding out which.  Really, all that mattered was that the runes inscribed on the frames were destroyed beyond recognition.  Philza leaned heavily against the wall outside the doorway, dread filling his core.  Had something happened last night, if there had been an accident, if the boys had died…</p>
<p>With the respawn runes destroyed, with no set spawn point, they would’ve been gone.  Dead.  Permanently.</p>
<p>Philza felt sick.  What could have happened rang endlessly in his head.  Someone, no, Wilbur deliberately did this.  He was beyond grateful the boy’s set their spawns elsewhere overnight. </p>
<p>Finally, he gathered himself and typed on his communicator. </p>
<p>
  <strong>&lt;Philza&gt; Wilbur.  I am in Pogtopia.  I need to talk to you</strong>
</p>
<p>
  <strong>&lt;WilburSoot&gt; Oh that’s nice, good to hear from you dad</strong>
</p>
<p>
  <strong>&lt;WilburSoot&gt; Too bad it couldn’t be under better circumstances.  </strong>
</p>
<p>
  <strong>&lt;Philza&gt; Where are you?  I promise that I will hear you out.</strong>
</p>
<p>
  <strong>&lt;WilburSoot&gt; Oh I’m not in Pogtopia right now father dearest</strong>
</p>
<p>Panic began to rise in Philza’s throat.  Where was Wilbur.</p>
<p>
  <strong>&lt;WilburSoot&gt; See, you’ve taken a couple things that belong to me, and now I’ve gotta go get them back.  </strong>
</p>
<p>
  <strong>&lt;Philza&gt; Son.  What do you mean?  Tell me where you are.</strong>
</p>
<p>
  <strong>&lt;WilburSoot&gt; sorry, got to go.  Busy day ahead!</strong>
</p>
<p>
  <strong>&lt;Philza&gt; Wilbur</strong>
</p>
<p>
  <strong>&lt;Philza&gt; Wilbur stop whatever you are doing!</strong>
</p>
<p>
  <strong>&lt;Philza&gt; Wilbur answer me now!</strong>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Shit.  If Wilbur knew where they had been staying somehow, he could be there already.  And now Philza was incredibly far away, too far to intervene in time.  Philza knew his son was smart, he had probably waited for Phil’s message to do anything.  Philza was sprinting up the stairs as he thought through his options.  He refused to be paralyzed by panic, he couldn’t be, not now. </p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <strong>&lt;Philza&gt; Bad I think Wilbur might be on his way or there already</strong>
</p>
<p>
  <strong>&lt;Philza&gt; you’ve got to protect the boys </strong>
</p>
<p>
  <strong>&lt;Philza&gt; Bad?</strong>
</p>
<p>There was no response.  This wasn’t good at all.  Phil was nowhere near fast enough to get there in time. </p>
<p>But, he knew someone who was.</p>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>
<hr/>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>
<p>Tubbo was listening attentively as Bad told him how to use the regen potion on his ear.  It was mostly straightforward, pour a little in the ear and hold it in there with a towel while not moving.  Once it was absorbed you were good to go.  Repeat twice daily.  It had been such a relief to learn he would get some hearing back in his ear.  When the boys had told Wilbur and requested some potions to use, he had taken a single look and told them it was hopeless.  That Tubbo would never hear from that ear again.  Tubbo was glad he had decided to let Bad help, but he understood why Tommy was so hesitant.  After learning about his ear Wilbur had taken every opportunity to sneak up on Tubbo and startle him from that side.  It wasn’t the worst thing Wilbur had done recently, but it certainly wasn’t pleasant either. </p>
<p>BOOM</p>
<p>An explosion sounded off from somewhere unnervingly close by.  Everyone in the room jumped and Badboyhalo was immediately in action.  In what felt like seconds the hybrid had donned a sword, typed something furiously into his communicator, and rushed to the door of the room.   Before exiting he paused, removed his communicator from his wrist, and tossed it to Tubbo.</p>
<p>“I’m sorry, I’m going to have to lock you in here for a little bit.  Don’t come out unless Philza or Skeppy messages you that it’s safe.  Try to stay calm, it’s all going to be okay.”  The tall man’s words of comfort were cut off by the distinctive clanging of swords and familiar shouting.  In an instant he had exited, the door was shut, and Tubbo could hear the sound of something heavy being placed outside the room. </p>
<p>“No!  Wait you dickhead!! Don’t just—” Tommy rushed to the door and flung it open, only to be faced with a solid black wall.  He continued to verbally protest until Tubbo grabbed his arm.</p>
<p>“Listen, be quiet” Normally Tommy would have argued, but they were both on the verge of outright panic.  Tubbo was trapped and he was fighting to remain cognizant as yellow concrete walls creeped into his consciousness.  That explosion didn’t help either.</p>
<p>Tommy was still pacing, only pausing to listen by the door.  The sounds of fighting could still be heard, but they didn’t seem to be coming any closer.  Not until…</p>
<p>“Boys, where are you?  Your good president Wilbur has come to rescue you, just let me know where you are.”  A door slammed somewhere within the house.  “If you tell me now, I’ll find it easy to believe that you were captured and held against your will.  No hard feelings, just come out to meet me.”  Wilbur’s voice was closer now. </p>
<p>Tubbo watched as Tommy started opening and closing his mouth like a fish out of water.  The tone Wilbur used was persuasive, they both knew the threat it held, and Tommy responded to it as he had been conditioned too.  Or he almost did.  As the first bit of a word started to leave his mouth Tubbo grabbed him around the waist in a tight hug, gently pulling him away from the door, towards the back of the room.  Tommy was stiff, his breathing far too fast.  It only sped up when the next words could be heard from much closer.</p>
<p>“Oh, back there are they?”</p>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>
<hr/>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>
<p>When Bad heard an explosion, his mind went into overdrive.  He didn’t do well in crisis situations, but he knew he had to do something, and fast.  He first donned his armor and made sure he had his sword, before messaging Niki frantically.</p>
<p>
  <strong>&lt;Badboyhalo&gt; Niki, get somewhere safe, hide wherever you can.  Don’t come out until Philza, Skeppy, or I send you a message.</strong>
</p>
<p>
  <strong>&lt;Nihachu&gt; Bad what is going on?  </strong>
</p>
<p>
  <strong>&lt;Badboyhalo&gt; Can’t talk, just hide for now</strong>
</p>
<p>Bad could only hope her lack of response meant she had found somewhere safe.  For now, he focused.  He tossed Tubbo his communicator before rushing out the door, he knew it wouldn’t be pleasant for them to be locked in there, but they would be safer.  With his communicator they could send messages to Philza, plus they could be told when it was safe to come out.  With a few words of comfort, he shut the door behind him.  He had to work fast.</p>
<p>The potion room was right next to one of the storage rooms, and he grabbed some obsidian from within it.  Covering the door would give away the boy’s location, but it would also buy them time and be a last layer of defense.  Though he desperately hoped it wouldn’t come to that.  He managed to get two layers down, while pointedly ignoring the sounds of fighting from the doorway, before there was a sudden, oppressive silence.  The front door creaked open.  Bad readied himself. </p>
<p>“Boys, where are you?  Your good president Wilbur has come to rescue you, just let me know where you are.  If you tell me now, I’ll find it easy to believe that you were captured and held against your will.  No hard feelings, just come out to meet me.” </p>
<p>Between each phrase Bad could hear Wilbur opening and shutting doors, checking every room as he moved through the hall.  Without his communicator Bad had no way of knowing if Skeppy was dead or alive.  All he could do was wait, listen, and hope.  Much too soon, Wilbur rounded the corner. </p>
<p>“Oh, back there are they?”</p>
<p>Wilbur’s grin wasn’t right.  The man looked downright deranged.  Still, Bad tried to reason with him.</p>
<p>“Hello Wilbur, I suggest you leave.”  Bad held his sword ready.</p>
<p>“No, I don’t think I will.”  There was hardly time to react, Wilbur had drawn a loaded crossbow and fired in an instant.  Bad realized that he didn’t even have a shield on him, and the hallway was far too narrow to dodge successfully.  So, he made the best split-second choice he could think of, as the arrow impacted his shoulder he charged down the hall towards Wilbur.  Not giving him a chance to load and fire a second time.  He could let his shoulder hurt later, for now he took his sword in his uninjured hand and swung, aiming for the other man’s ribs.  Wilbur narrowly blocked the blow with his own sword. </p>
<p>Everyone knew Wilbur isn’t the best fighter, even Bad, who avoided fighting when possible, outclassed him by a mile.  The tall brunette was getting steadily pushed back when Badboyhalo started to feel dizzy.  One of his swings went wider then intended, and he had to briefly brace himself on the wall.  The world seemed to tunnel in around him. </p>
<p>“Is that arrow taking effect?  Fucking finally.”  Bad took the opportunity while Wilbur was gloating to strike again, but he was too off balance now.  He could barely see, and Wilbur dodged easily, slashing his blade deep across the hybrid’s chest.  Bad’s armor absorbed most of the blow, but the impact was enough to knock him to the ground in his weakened state.  He knew he had been poisoned, most likely blinded and weakened as well.  He had to steady himself on his hands and knees, just barely maintaining his grip on his sword.</p>
<p>“Just stay down there.”  Bad shivered as the tall man patted the top of his head before moving past, towards the room the boys were in.  Bad forced himself to his feet. </p>
<p>Wilbur turned as he approached, once again managing to block the blow and return one of his own.  This time drawing blood as he tore a gash in Bad’s side. </p>
<p>“Told you to stay down.  I’m just going to get the boys and leave; this isn’t your concern.” </p>
<p>Bad didn’t bother to grace that with a response.  Focused on ignoring the pain, balancing, keeping moving.  This time he didn’t attack, using the momentum of his charge to push past Wilbur instead.  He caught a nasty cut on the leg for the action, but now he was between Wilbur and the obsidian wall.  He braced his back against it, holding his sword out defensively.</p>
<p>“Oh, you really don’t want to make this easy, do you?” It wasn’t a question.  Wilbur chuckled darkly. </p>
<p>“Fine.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>
<p> <strong>Badboyhalo was slain by WilburSoot</strong></p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>This chapter... well.  What can I say except I'm sorry.  <br/>For those of you that were looking forward to a Wilbur-Philza confrontation I'm sorry to disappoint, but I suppose you'll just have to wait.  Things are going down.  </p>
<p>Also, my apologies for the cliffhanger, but it was kinda the perfect chapter break.<br/>Sorry not sorry.<br/>Thank you for reading and all the comments, really interested to see peoples' reactions to this one.....  <br/>--R&amp;T</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0009"><h2>9. Shut down; Wake up</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Wilbur is right outside the door.  Their protectors are gone.<br/>Tommy and Tubbo are faced with their nightmare<br/>Will Philza finally be able to talk to Wilbur?</p>
          </blockquote><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Oh boy, sit down for this one.<br/>Spoiler warning, there is a part/conversation in this chapter that draws from cannon events on the smp from the 16th.  It's mostly some good lines and such.  But if you haven't seen those streams it could be a spoiler.  </p><p>TW: Blood, violence, description of injury, panic, anxiety, reference to abuse, reference to death, disassociation</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>


  <strong>Badboyhalo was slain by WilburSoot</strong>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>Both boys stared at the wristband Tubbo held with wide eyes.  Tommy instantly started to panic, they heard the two fighting, last they heard was an impact against the wall, a yell, a long silence, and Bad’s communicator ping.  Now, they’re screwed.  Wilbur is right outside he’s going to take them back to Pogtopia and this time no one is going to come for them.  Philza promised they were safe but he’s not here.  Wilbur is here.</p><p>Tommy was aware of Tubbo’s still form beside him.  The smaller boy appeared to have shut down, as if he just couldn’t handle any more.  They had been messaging Phil on the communicator, telling him what was happening, but neither had the energy anymore. </p><p>Tommy felt his chest constrict tighter as his breathing worsened.  Wilbur was going to be so mad they left, there is no way this goes well.</p><p>“Boys, I know you’re in there.”  The first impact of a pickaxe against the wall could be heard.  “No need for silence, I’ll be with you soon.  We’ve got a war to fight after all.” </p><p>“No, no no no no” Tommy heard himself pleading with no one. </p><p>“If you behave, I might be able to forget this betrayal.  You were convinced by Philza, I understand.  We can put this behind us.”  Wilbur continued to drone on in between strikes of the pickaxe.  He sounded like he was making headway.  Every instinct in Tommy’s body was telling him to start pleading with Wilbur.  To start apologizing and begging forgiveness.  For both their sakes.  Tubbo was frozen on the floor next to him.  Unmoving since the communicator rang out the death message.  Tommy tried to speak, to begin the work of getting Wilbur to listen, but his throat was too dry.  His chest too tight.  He couldn’t get the words out.  Wilbur was getting closer. </p><p>All Tommy could do was stare out the doorframe, watching as the last layer of obsidian formed cracks in its surface. </p><p> </p><p> </p>
<hr/><p> </p><p> </p><p>Philza couldn’t remember ever having run this fast in his life.  He was sprinting through the woods, soon he would be on the path, then to the house.  He was so close, but also so desperately far away.  The boys had been messaging him using Bad’s communicator.  Last they said Bad and Wilbur were fighting outside the room they were locked in.  Then Phil got the death message.  They hadn’t responded since.  Philza had never missed his elytra wings more than in this moment, sprinting recklessly through unfamiliar ground.  He just had to get to the boys.</p><p> </p><p> </p>
<hr/><p> </p><p> </p><p>“Almost there.”  Tommy heard the words through an all too thin layer of obsidian.  The cracks were widening, any moment now Wilbur would be through.  Any moment now they would be back in his grasp, back under his control.  Tommy continued to shudder from the floor, there was nothing he or Tubbo could do.  He turned his head away, not wanting to see the gloating look on Wilbur’s face when he busted through the wall. </p><p>Then, there was a moment of silence.  Something impacted the wall that didn’t sound like a pickaxe.  Something heavy hit the floor.  Bad’s communicator pinged. </p><p> </p><p>
  <strong>WilburSoot was shot by Technoblade</strong>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>Tommy stared at the message over his friends’ shoulder.  Nothing made sense anymore.  Were they still going to get taken back to Pogtopia?  Did Techno have some other plans for them?  Slow footsteps came down the hallway towards their room. </p><p>“Hey.”  A low, familiar, voice spoke in a gravely tone from the other side of the wall.  “Tommy?  Tubbo?  Are you in there?  Listen, I’m going to break a little hole in this wall.  I won’t come in, just enough to make sure you aren’t hurt.”  Neither boy spoke, huddled with their backs to the wall, they just waited, as if resigned to whatever fate was headed their way. </p><p>A couple soft blows from the pickaxe later and Techno’s upper body could be seen through the gap.  He stuck his head through and snorted through his nose.  Having apparently deemed them uninjured he backed up again, then stopped moving.  Tommy didn’t know what the piglin hybrid was doing, but the way he shuffled his feet sounded uncertain.  </p><p>Somewhere in the back of Tommy’s head he could swear he was forgetting something important.  Whatever it was, he decided he didn’t care.  He leaned his head on Tubbo’s shoulder and waited. </p><p> </p><p> </p>
<hr/><p> </p><p> </p><p>Philza rushed up the walkway to the house, his communicator had pinged a final time while he was on the path, and he didn’t know whether to be relieved or upset by the second death message.  As he approached, he saw a concerning amount of red staining the white quartz on the front of the house.  He was almost in the door when he saw the ragged pile of red and blue slumped against the wall outside.  He dropped to a knee, briefly checking over the small form of Skeppy, unconscious but breathing.  The young man’s breaths were ragged and pained, but he was alive.  Phil knew he needed medical attention, but he didn’t currently have anything useful on him.  He decided to not move him yet, instead entering the house and looking around for any sign of the boys. </p><p>“Techno?  Tommy?  Tub—”</p><p>“Over here.”  Techno’s deep voice could be heard from a hallway off to the right. </p><p>Philza was there in a flash, taking it all in.  The blood spilled around the hall, the half-broken obsidian wall, and Techno awkwardly standing in the middle of it all.  He started spitting instructions.</p><p>“Techno, go help Skeppy outside, make sure he doesn’t bleed out on us.”  Techno seemed relieved to be given direction, he immediately rushed out of the hallway.  Philza cautiously approached the partially revealed doorway.  It was open enough to see into, but not quite enough to get through without scraping yourself up significantly.  The relief he felt upon seeing the two boys sitting in a huddle against the wall was only matched by the pain he felt at how broken they looked. </p><p>“Tubbo?”  The smaller boy didn’t so much as flinch when his name was called.  He just stared at his hands.  If not for the rise and fall of his chest, Phil would be afraid he was dead.  He tried again.</p><p>“Tommy?  Hey Tommy, it’s me.  Your old man.  I’m here now.  Tommy, can you look at me?”  Several heart-wrenching moments later Tommy raised his head.  “Good job mate, now I’m going to clear out the rest of this rubble okay?  Is that alright?”</p><p>Tommy nodded mutely and without expression.  Still, Philza took that as permission enough.  He recognized the room as an infirmary, and based on his brief look at Skeppy, they would he needing that shortly.  Tommy’s blank eyes followed him as he cleared the obsidian away. </p><p>“Hey Phil, Skeppy needs more than just some bandages out here.”  Techno called to him from the other room.  Okay, first get the boys out, then we can bring Skeppy in here.  His plan was stunted before it could begin.  He tried to approach the boys carefully, but Tommy growled at him wordlessly when he approached.  He asked them if they would move, if they could stand to go somewhere else, but got no responses.  There was no chance of just picking up the boys and moving them either.  Philza was certain Tubbo wouldn’t have put up much of a fight, but Tommy was heightened beyond belief, practically snarling at him if he so much as suggested touching either of them. </p><p>“Can you bring him in here Techno?” Phil finally gave up on trying to move the boys.  Fortunately, the room was large enough for him to move about without getting too close to the huddled forms on the floor.  They would just have to stay there for the moment. </p><p>Techno entered with a rough grunt, only briefly running his eyes across Tommy and Tubbo questioningly, before he laid his burden down on the cot. </p><p>“What’ve we got?”</p><p>“He isn’t in immediate danger of bleeding out, but he’s got a fairly deep cut on his stomach.  Wil must’ve stabbed him in the leg too, cause he’s practically got a hole in that.  I had to tourniquet it, but I think he just missed any major arteries.  And, Wilbur threw some kind of explosive at him, probably to start the fight, can’t imagine how he could’ve beaten Skeppy otherwise.  By the looks of it he’s got several broken ribs and probably a concussion.”  As Technoblade spoke Philza was already in full swing.  He first started dealing with the cuts.  Techno was right, definitely a stab wound on the thigh. </p><p>“Check for health potions in those cabinets, would you?”  Philza received a grunt of affirmation, then heard the clinking of bottles. </p><p>“Sorry to ruin your shirt mate” Philza mumbled as he cut the blood-soaked shirt off Skeppy’s prone form. </p><p>“We’ve got three straight healing, two fire resistance, and seven regeneration pots.”  At Philza’s confused look Techno added “They were on the brewing stands for some reason.  Don’t know why they had that many.” </p><p>Without adding any words Phil grabbed one of the healing and one of the regen.  He poured about half a healing pot onto the leg wound, he needed that one to seal up as soon as possible.  While the potion did its work knitting flesh back together Phil helped it along by adding neat stitches on the wound, along with a bandage soaked in copious amounts of regen.  After cleaning off the area Phil nodded to himself.  That would hold for now.  The good thing about the stab wound was that it was relatively clean, the same couldn’t be said for the slash across the young man’s stomach.  Phil had to start the laborious process of cleaning it out without injuring it further, sponging health potion into it, and closing it up.  It took a while.</p><p>In the meantime, he had Techno mix a health and regen potion together.  As soon as the stomach was bandaged to Phil’s satisfaction he took the glass and propped the smaller man into a more vertical position.  Skeppy was slight enough that this wasn’t a challenge, but he needed Techno’s help to balance him while also pouring the mixed potion down his throat, encouraging him to swallow it. </p><p>The man’s breathing became more intense, when with a jolt, he regained consciousness.</p><p>“Wha… owwwww… Bad?  Bad!  Where’s Bad?” Philza interrupted his delirious questioning before it could become frantic.</p><p>“Lay down Skeppy, you’re going to reopen your wounds.  Bad should be respawning any minute now.”  As if on cue, unsteady footsteps could be heard stumbling down the stairs.  “Techno, go help him down here before he hurts himself.  He should not be up yet.”  Philza could hear Bad talking from the moment he reached the landing.</p><p>“I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I tried to protect them I’m so sorry.”  A glance down the hall at Techno revealed him looking absolutely lost, no clue how to handle any of this.  If the situation were different Philza would’ve laughed at the image.  Technoblade scared of Badboyhalo, a sight you’d have to see to believe.  As it was, he started responding as soon as Bad was within earshot. </p><p>“Bad, hey Bad!  The boys are here.  Look.”  Philza had to awkwardly sidestep to give Bad a view of the boys while also holding down Skeppy who was still weakly trying to get up.  Phil saw the hybrids glowing eyes widen with what he could only identify as relief.  He slumped a little more against Techno, who it seemed was already supporting most of the man’s weight.</p><p>“Skeppy?  Is he okay?”  Suddenly Bad was moving more quickly, leaning up against Skeppy’s bedside.  Skeppy grabbed his hand as soon as it was within reach.</p><p>“He’ll be fine Bad.  It was a good thing you had all these regen potions available, otherwise… but he’s out of the woods.  He’s going to be recovering before you know it.”   Bad seemed relieved.</p><p>“Oh good…” was all he managed to say before he collapsed.  Techno was right there to catch him before he hit anything and moved him to the second cot in the room.  As he was getting laid down, he managed to mumble one last thing.  “You gotta… you’ll gotta message Niki, she’s hiding… gotta message Niki.”</p><p>After a moment of silence Technoblade spoke up “He’s out.” </p><p>“Of course he is! Don’t these people know better then to get up and start running around right after a respawn like that.  I’m surprised he made it as far as he did!”  Philza wiped off his hands and tapped furiously into his communicator.  Glancing down at Skeppy who had passed back out at some point, he was content with his treatments for the moment.  With plenty of regeneration potion for every bandage the wounds should heal without complications.  He set aside one for him to drink next time he woke up as well, to help with internal injuries.</p><p>Eventually Niki crept into the room.  She looked terrified even now.  With wide eyes she gazed around the room, eventually landing on the still boys on the floor.  With considerable coxing Tommy let her settle down next to them, and in a soothing voice she started to work on bringing them back to reality.</p><p> </p><p> </p>
<hr/><p> </p><p> </p><p>Tommy wasn’t cognizant enough to realize how deeply he was in shock.  All he registered was movement and sound.  Someone kept trying to get close to him and Tubbo, but he wasn’t going to let them do that.  The room smelled like blood and more people kept coming in.  Tommy finally recognized someone through the haze.  Oh, Technoblade is here.  Must be back in Pogtopia then.  Gotta protect Tubbo.  Another person got down near them, Tommy started to ward them off, but some part of his brain sparked in recognition.  It’s just Niki.  He let her sit next to him. </p><p>Tommy knew she was talking to him, but he didn’t bother to try to process the words.  Nothing seemed to matter.  It was just meaningless murmuring.  The first words he recognized weren’t even spoken by Niki.  Tubbo shifted beside him.</p><p>“Wilbur isn’t here?”  It was spoken as a question.  The smaller brunette didn’t look anywhere other than his hands when he spoke, the words directed at no particular person.  Tommy looked at Tubbo questioningly.  Of course Wilbur was here, why would he ask that?  Wilbur was going to give them a task any minute now or start ranting about destroying everything.  What kind of question was that?</p><p>He could remember Wilbur coming down the hall, the obsidian cracking. </p><p>“Yes, he is far away from here.”  The voice sounded certain, and familiar in a way Tommy couldn’t immediately place. </p><p>“Technoblade killed him?”  Again, a question.</p><p>“Yes, Techno killed him, but he’s in the other room now.  Wilbur probably hasn’t even respawned yet.”  The voice sounded like home.  It was comforting.</p><p>“Oh.  He was really close.  He… the wall was right about to break I think.”  Tubbo’s voice didn’t hold any emotion.  Tommy empathized.  Too drained even to feel.  Something was still nagging him about this though.  There was a thought in the back of his mind that wouldn’t leave.  He didn’t have the energy to grasp it, but every time Wilbur was mentioned he knew he was forgetting something.  It must have been important, but the man who sounded like home was talking again, and Tommy lost the fleeting trail of thought.</p><p> </p><p> </p>
<hr/><p> </p><p> </p><p>Philza was shocked to hear how close Wilbur had gotten.  He knew there hadn’t been much leeway, but he hadn’t considered it being a matter of seconds.  His heart was flooded in gratitude for the two men on the cots, especially Bad, who writhed and gasped painfully, unconscious and feeling the aftereffects of respawn.  Those seconds Bad bought with his life could very well have made all the difference. </p><p>When Philza crouched down in front of the boys, this time, Tommy didn’t growl or lurch defensively.  Phil took that as a good sign.</p><p>“Boys, even if Wilbur had gotten to you, I never would stop coming for you.  I would follow him to the ends of the earth to protect you.  But he isn’t here, you are safe.”   Tommy appeared to relax as he spoke, though whether it was from the words or soothing tone Philza couldn’t be certain.  Tubbo was still focused on the communicator he gripped tightly in his hand.  His form tightened for a moment, before the pair of blue eyes rose to meet Philza’s own. </p><p>“Could you move away a little bit?”  Phil was already backing up before he could finish the request.  “Tommy, I’m going to stand up.  Stay here for a second.”  Tommy looked over at Tubbo unseeing, but something must have registered, because Philza saw his death grip on the other boy loosen.  Tubbo wiggled free and stood up, taking a moment to gain his balance before walking.  Philza, though across the room, was ready to catch him if he fell.  But after a moment Tubbo steadied himself and approached the cots that sat side by side.  He glanced around cautiously but kept moving until he was squeezed between the two, facing where Badboyhalo lay unconscious.   The boy gently took Bad’s ashy hand in his own and started to fasten the communicator around his wrist. </p><p>“Thank you.”  That was all Tubbo said.  It was more than enough.  As Tubbo was backing up, clearly intending to return to Tommy, he got startled by Skeppy tossing behind him.  The slight teen turned until he could see both older men in his vision.  Evaluating.  Skeppy continued to flinch around as pain from his injures crept into his unconscious state.  Bad similarly whimpered and gasped periodically.  Respawn wasn’t fun, and he had only made it worse by getting up and running around immediately after. </p><p>Philza was surprised to see Tubbo approach the beds, and again, reach for Bad’s hand.  This time he clearly had a new goal set in mind.  As Phil watched in confusion, Tubbo took Bad’s hand and moved it to where Skeppy’s hung off the side of his cot.  As soon as they touched Skeppy unconsciously grasped the other’s hand tightly.  When Bad’s hand returned the gesture both men stilled, seeming to be soothed by subconscious knowledge of the other’s presence.  When Tubbo turned around again he had the smallest look of satisfaction on his face.  Philza only realized his own face was a mask of disbelief when Tubbo shrugged at him and answered the unspoken question. </p><p>“I’d want to know that Tommy was there if I was hurt.”  That was explanation enough for both of them, or it would have to be, since Tubbo immediately returned to his friend on the floor.  Philza heard footsteps in the hall.</p><p>“Hey Phil, I’m going to go outside and keep watch.  Wilbur should be respawning any minute and… It can’t hurt to be prepared.”  Techno was right, far better to be safe than sorry.  He was about to reply the affirmative when Tommy unexpectedly shot to his feet.</p><p> </p><p> </p>
<hr/><p> </p><p> </p><p>Tommy was starting to break through some of the fog.  Tubbo had gotten up to do something, and Tubbo would never leave him if there was danger.  This was such an unshakable certainty in Tommy’s heart that he willingly released his grip on his friends’ arm.  He did his best to tune into the conversation.  Tubbo was saying something about him, he heard his name again.  It didn’t seem to matter, Tubbo returned to his side and Tommy sighed lightly, released a breath he didn’t know he was holding. </p><p>He recognized Techno’s voice from somewhere out of sight.  Tommy still couldn’t puzzle out why his brother was here, but so long as Tubbo was okay with it he could be too.  Still he tried to listen more intently to the deeply voiced words.  Something about Wilbur and respawning.  That same nagging feeling crept up his spine again.  Wilbur would be respawning soon.  A jolt like electricity.  Why was that important?  Wilbur would respawn, he had died, he would respawn in… he would respawn in…</p><p>“PHILZA!! Wilbur… Wilbur is going to blow everything up!! He’s going to do it we have to stop him!  Please he’s… Wilbur will…”   Tommy was on his feet in pure panic, only vaguely aware that Tubbo had followed him up.  He remembered why this was important.</p><p>“Easy, easy son, slow down.  Explain what you mean.”  The man Tommy now could recognize as Phil, as his father, was trying to calm him from across the room.  The older man’s face was pure concern.</p><p>Tommy got dizzy from standing up so fast, but Tubbo steadied him. </p><p>“Wil, he said, he set his spawn in the room!  In the room in L’Manburg.  He said that if he died at any time… if he died, he would respawn there, and set it off!”  Philza still didn’t understand.</p><p>“What room Tommy?  Set what off?” </p><p>“The TNT!  It was all wired to that room!!  He set it up with a button, that’s the room where he will respawn and… we have to stop him!” </p><p> </p><p> </p>
<hr/><p> </p><p> </p><p>The next moments were a whirlwind of activity that rushed around Niki, leaving her still as if in the eye of a hurricane.  Technoblade had been asked if he knew where the room was, he shook his head solemnly.  Niki affirmed what they all were thinking, Tommy was the only one that knew.  If Philza was going to get there in time to stop anything Tommy would need to show him the way. </p><p>Techno had gotten there on a horse, so it was decided Tommy and Philza would ride, with Techno following using some sort of enchanted trident.  They were almost on their way when Tommy and Tubbo realized this meant being separated.  Tubbo looked incredibly anxious at the prospect, but he probably would’ve been fine staying there.  Tommy on the other hand was outright distraught.  Niki could see his mind working through every worst possibility of what could happen while he was gone.  For someone who previously chided Tubbo for being clingy, recent events had flipped that dynamic on its head. </p><p>So, they needed a new solution.  And they needed it fast. </p><p>“Pearls!”  Tommy shouted out of nowhere.  Everyone paused their discussion to look at him in confusion.  “I can use ender pearls to lead the way there quickly, Philza and Tubbo can ride on the horse and follow me.”  No one particularly liked that idea, it wasn’t exactly discreet, and using enderpearls was hazardous, not to mention painful.  Teleporting with them stirred your insides around and there was always a chance of injury.  But they didn’t see any other options.  Fortunately, Bad and Skeppy had a well-stocked supply in their storage room.</p><p>Before Niki knew it, she was alone, with only the two unconscious forms in the infirmary for company.   She could only hope they got there in time.</p><p> </p><p> </p>
<hr/><p> </p><p> </p><p>Quackity had woken up that morning with the realization that he hadn’t had a good day since before the festival.  Working with Schlatt had never been… enjoyable.  But he could tolerate it.  He didn’t realize just how much of a burden Schlatt’s undivided attention could be until he had it.  He hadn’t realized how much of the load of dealing with and tempering Schlatt’s cruelty had been born by Tubbo, until he had to face it all alone. </p><p>He shouldn’t have to be alone.  The bitter thought occurred to him dozens of times a day.  George was supposed to be here alongside him in this whole thing, but he hadn’t seen his running mate in months.  The other just ran back to his Dream Team the moment Schlatt dropped the sweet facade.  So, when Schlatt’s cruelty worsened, when he started drinking more, became more erratic, it had been him and Tubbo holding back the tide. </p><p>Then Schlatt executed him.  Quackity didn’t know what was going to happen that day.  He was just as in the dark as anyone else had been about the whole thing.  He didn’t want that to happen.  Him and Tubbo, they had formed a bond working under Schlatt, they were friends.  Quackity found himself caring less and less that Tubbo had technically betrayed him. </p><p>As his scorn for Schlatt grew, his anger at Tubbo shrunk, until it had all but vanished entirely.  Even during the festival Quackity had pleaded vocally for Tubbo to be imprisoned instead, not killed.  The action of speaking out against Schlatt was not one he had taken kindly to. </p><p>When the fireworks exploded, Purpled had been between him and the closest blast.  Still, the impact knocked him off the stage sideways and he died practically instantly upon impact.  Quackity could only assume he broke his neck or something, since his respawn was mercifully quick and he had no visible scars.  The moment he regained consciousness he stumbled out of the white house behind the stage, and towards the box where Tubbo had been imprisoned.  He was half blind, still shaking and stumbling from respawn.  But he somehow made it to the stage.  He only got a moment to see Tubbo blink out of existence from Tommy’s arms before Tommy had stabbed him in the chest. </p><p>That sent him into the worst respawn he had ever experienced.  He now understood why you didn’t want to get into danger while still recovering from respawn, the pain from the first amplified tenfold, then tenfold again since you were still experiencing it while you died a second time.  No thanks.  It took him few hours to wake up from that one.  Schlatt was only furious that he hadn’t managed to kill Tommy. </p><p>Quackity missed Tubbo. </p><p>So, when he saw enderpearls tossed over the tree line within Manburg’s borders, Quackity drew Schlatt’s attention in the other direction.  He pointed out a new location for expansion, chatted about apartment buildings, kept Schlatt’s back turned to the people rushing through the forest behind him. </p><p>After all, Quackity didn’t like Schlatt.</p><p> </p><p> </p>
<hr/><p> </p><p> </p><p>The horse thundered to a stop and Philza practically threw himself from it.  Tommy was standing next to a discreet hole in a seemingly random hill in L’Manburg, a dark tunnel visible through it. </p><p>“Is this far enough away to be safe?”  Philza took a moment to ensure their safety. </p><p>“Yeah, it should be.”  Tommy was putting on a show of confidence, but his legs were trembling. </p><p>“Alright, stay out here, maybe even go further away.”  Aware of the time constraints Philza turned and entered the tunnel.  It wasn’t as long as he had expected, after only a minute of walking the tunnel opened up into a small room.  There, standing facing the opposite wall, was his eldest son.  Finally, Phil had a chance to see him, to talk to him. </p><p>“What are you doing?”  Phil’s voice was level, but even he could recognize the tone.  The same tone he used when the boys were younger, when one of them had messed up and needed to be told what they did was wrong. </p><p>“Oh, oh!  Phil.  Hi.”  Wilbur half turned to face him, the dim lighting illuminating his fluffy brown hair from behind, making it glow like a halo. </p><p>“Wilbur.”</p><p>“I really didn’t expect you to be here Phil.  Tell me… Do you know what this button is?”  Wilbur gestured to an innocuous looking wooden button built into the wall behind him. </p><p>“Uh, huh.”  Philza was waiting.  Wilbur needed to account for his actions.  He had the patience to wait him out. </p><p>“Did you ever hear the song I wrote Philza, about L’Manburg?”  Wilbur was distant, swaying slightly as he stood, eyes never staying in one spot for any length of time. </p><p>“I’ve heard it, Tommy sent me a recording when you first wrote it.”  Philza noticed for the first time the words scribbled on the walls of the room.  Wilbur was mouthing them silently as his eyes caught them. </p><p>“Oh.  Tommy, heh, where is he now?”</p><p>“That doesn’t matter.  Let’s sit down Wilbur, get away from that button and talk about this.”  Philza noticed a bed in the corner of the room and saw the glow of spawn runes on the frame.  This was how Wilbur got here so quickly.  He held out a hand towards his son, hoping he would take it.  Wilbur spat at him.</p><p>“It doesn’t matter where Tommy is?  Of course it does!! Everyone has betrayed me, they’ve all left and now I’ve got nothing.  My country is gone, the place I wrote this anthem about IS NO MORE!  And it never will exist again Phil!  Never!” </p><p>“Wilbur, listen to yourself.  The country is still there, sure you aren’t in charge anymore, but that can change.  Besides, aren’t the people more important than the land anyway?” </p><p>For a brief moment, Philza thought he saw a spark in his son’s eyes.  A glimpse of clarity, of recognition.  He tried to grab ahold of it.</p><p>“Your family Wil.  You’ve hurt them enough already.  End this, let us start repairing the damage, together.”  For a moment Wilbur wavered, he stretched out his hand towards Philza’s, hovering close.</p><p>Then he pulled it back.  His eyes had an unfamiliar sharpness to them. </p><p>“Why should I care about any of that!  They’ve all betrayed me!  If I’ve hurt them, then it was necessary.  Everything I’ve done, all that I am is for something long dead and gone.  I just need the world to reflect that fact.”  Wilbur paused with his hand outstretched towards the wall.  “Besides, I don’t even know if it works any more Phil.”</p><p>“Wil, you don’t want to take that chance son.”</p><p>“Oh, but I do!  I do!  If I can’t have it no one can Phil!!  NO ONE!  Not Dream, not Schlatt, not even Tommy.”</p><p>“Don’t do it Wil.”  Wilbur’s hand rested lightly on the button.</p><p>“There was a saying Phil, by a traitor once.  I, I think it fits nicely here.” </p><p>“Son…”</p><p>“It was never meant to be.”</p><p>The button compressed with a click, and the world erupted.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Wow.  Longer chapter but honestly one of my favorites I've written.<br/>Was anyone expecting this turn of events?<br/>Tommy and Tubbo just can't catch a break can they?  </p><p>In a world building sense I also like this chapter because it explains respawn mechanics a little bit more.  There is logical reasoning behind why some respawns are more traumatic and painful then others, and why some take longer to recover physically from.  (For instance, it's never mentioned in this story but Bbh died ultimately of blood loss after Wilbur stabbed him near the sternum.  When he respawned his body had regenerated enough blood to live, but per the nature of respawns in this world he still is suffering from pretty dramatic blood loss.  Hence why he shouldn't be moving around and is unconscious.)  The emotions at the moment of your death play a pretty significant role in how bad the respawn will be.  </p><p>Anyway! That's my blurb about world building.  I love seeing everyone's reactions to this story.<br/>Oh, and my apologies for leaving you on another cliffhanger.<br/>&lt;3--R&amp;T</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0010"><h2>10. Loss</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Wilbur pushed the button.<br/>Tommy and Tubbo watch their world fall apart.</p>
          </blockquote><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Alright, here we go.  &lt;3<br/>(Spoilers for streams from 16th again)<br/>CW: Swearing intensifies </p>
<p>TW:  Blood, violence, referenced abuse, abuse, injury, anxiety, panic, disassociation</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Philza felt as the explosion impacted his chest.  He was slammed against the wall as rocks fell unevenly from the roof.  Everything was dust and dirt and noise for several minutes. </p>
<p>He started trying to take stock of himself once the world stopped shaking.  His left leg hurt badly, it seemed like it had been torn up.  But as Philza pushed himself to his feet it supported his weight.  Probably not broken then.  His head hurt fiercely, and his eyes burned from all the floating dust in the room. </p>
<p>Where was Wilbur?</p>
<p>Philza heard coughing from somewhere in front of him.  Part of the cave had collapsed around him, but there was just enough space to start working himself towards the noise.  He rounded a corner and was hit with light.  If his head hurt before, now it was agony.  But still he moved forward.  He heard shuffling and footsteps. </p>
<p>Philza found himself looking out into the ruins of L’Manburg.  The explosion had blown away the front of the cave and it now looked out into the wreckage.  A crater really was all that was left to see.  The explosives had done their deadly work. </p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <strong>Jschlatt blew up</strong>
</p>
<p>
  <strong>Quackity blew up</strong>
</p>
<p>
  <strong>Punz blew up</strong>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Philza eyes focused on his eldest child, silhouetted in the opening, staring out at the destruction passively.  He limped up alongside him. </p>
<p>“Oh my god, Wil.  It’s all gone.”  His son finally acknowledged his presence.  They looked over the smoldering ruins together.</p>
<p>“My L’Manburg Phil.  My unfinished symphony, forever unfinished!”  Wilbur turned and faced him, the young man’s face was covered in soot and dust.  His arm was bleeding from an unseen wound.</p>
<p>He looked… He looked proud. </p>
<p>“If I can’t have this, no one can Phil.”    Wilbur turned and returned to a shape against the wall.  He carefully started stacking something on top of it, delicately arranging it.  An odd “T” formation was being formed out of the brown substance.  Someone wailed in the distance. </p>
<p>Philza looked back out over the ruins.  He spotted movement on the edge of the crater, near the forest.  A red and white form crumpled at the edge of the crater.  Someone stood next to them in a green shirt.  Armor and enchantments were worn by the figure hovering behind them. </p>
<p>“Wilbur” When Philza turned to address his son, he was surprised to see him already facing towards him, also looking out towards the group.  Wil started speaking without looking at him.</p>
<p>“Kill me.  Phil, kill me.”</p>
<p>“What?  No!”  Phil backed up a little as Wilbur moved towards him, the much taller brunette held a sword in his hands, offering it. </p>
<p>“Kill me Philza, do it!  Stab me with this sword.”  Wilbur tossed the sword at him, Phil caught it out of instinct. </p>
<p>“You’re my son!” Wilbur gazed past him, eyes oddly focused behind him, back into the cave.  Philza stopped backing up and held the sword to his side.</p>
<p>“No matter what you’ve done, you’re my son.”  There was a brief moment of lucidity in the eyes of Wilbur Soot.  He looked at Phil, really looked at him for the first time that day. </p>
<p>“I know, look at all the work that went into this Phil, and now it’s gone.  Kill me.  I’m just going to do more, you know it.  I’m not going to stop I—” </p>
<p>“No.”</p>
<p>For a moment, Wilbur seemed to struggle with himself.  He slowly turned away from Phil to survey the ruins once again.  When he turned back, the moment was gone.  The spark was gone from his eyes. </p>
<p>“Fine then.”  Wilbur had sunken back into a shell of himself.  Philza couldn’t recognize the gleeful face grinning back at him.  Wilbur turned sharply and pulled something out of his bag.  Something black and rough and…</p>
<p>“Wil no!  Stop!”</p>
<p>“Oh, you want me to stop Phil.  I’m only following your advice.  You said the people are more important right?  I still see people standing out there.”  Wilbur placed the first skull upon the soul sand.</p>
<p>“I hope the boys got new spawn points.”  He placed the second.</p>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <strong>WilburSoot was slain by Philza</strong>
</p>
<p>
  
</p>
<p> </p>
<hr/>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>
<p>Technoblade went to find Philza.  Rather than try to maneuver his way through the collapsed tunnel, he used to trident to fly up into the opening to the cave.  He landed with a huff and he instantly became aware of the smell of blood.  His eyes started adjusting to the semidarkness. </p>
<p>Philza kneeled in a crumpled heap on the floor.  Technoblade expected as much after seeing the message on his communicator.  But as he walked closer, his eyes widened, and he rushed to his father’s side.  Wilber was cradled in Philza’s arms, a sword sticking through his chest.  His eyes were open and blank.  Philza was rocking back and forth, murmuring nothings under his breath.  Technoblade dropped next to them. </p>
<p>“He, I saw the message, why hasn’t he…”  Techno was confused, a chill like ice crept its way up his spine. </p>
<p>“I didn’t, I didn’t know son.  I’m sorry Wil.”  Philza didn’t seem to hear him.  Techno was rapidly growing frantic.  He grabbed Phil’s shoulders and shook them roughly, perhaps more so then intended.</p>
<p>“Phil!  What happened?  Why isn’t he respawning?”  His father slowly met his gaze, eyes filled with heartbreak. </p>
<p>“The bed Tech.  In the explosion…  I didn’t know.”  Techno jumped to his feet, in the corner, under a pile of rubble, was indeed a bed.  It was barely recognizable as such anymore.  Techno frantically started pulling and throwing the rubble off of it, desperate to clear it.  Maybe it was just blocked maybe… Techno held the main pieces of wood from the bedframe in his hands.  Right through the center, right through the runes that insured respawn, it had cracked clear in half. </p>
<p>Wil was gone. </p>
<p>Techno became aware of the volume of Philza’s pleading increasing.  He turned his head weakly and watched as Wilbur’s lifeless form slowly faded away. </p>
<p>A sword clattered to the floor.</p>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>
<hr/>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>
<p>Quackity followed Schlatt obediently through what was left of Manburg.  Somehow the man had managed to find a bottle of liquor and was downing it as they stumbled through the ruins.  It had been only 35 minutes since they died in an unexpected explosion, and Quackity was not feeling well at all.  His head ached and he could feel the line of a new scar under his hair, where he must have hit his head against something.  He passively allowed himself to be dragged out of his bed and the house when Schlatt showed up, but he wasn’t sure how much longer he could stay on his feet.  It seemed that anger and alcohol were enough to fuel Schlatt though, that or he had a much easier respawn then Quackity experienced. </p>
<p>They were lucky they both had set spawns in a new building on the outskirts of town recently.  Otherwise… Quackity shuddered unconsciously at the thought. </p>
<p>“Come on!  Keep your flatty patty moving!”  Schlatt was shouting at him again, urging him to keep pace.  It really wasn’t doing his head any good. </p>
<p>“Look, I think I see somebody over there!  Message Purpled and Ponk for me, Punz too if he’s awake.  Let’s take care of some rebel scum.”  Schlatt was moving towards two familiar figures on the other side of the crater.  Quackity checked himself to make sure he had his gear, pausing, trying to slow Schlatt down, to give the boys time to flee the area.</p>
<p>“Get over here!!” </p>
<p>Damn his head hurt. </p>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>
<hr/>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>
<p>Philza ached.  The kind of pain that transcended the physical, that left you shuddering, wishing that reality was anything other then what you were faced with.  He couldn’t even move.  Grief was a mild word to describe how he felt sitting in that cave, soaked in his son’s blood. </p>
<p>Phil remembered how Wilbur had looked behind him, that moment of clarity.</p>
<p>He knew. </p>
<p>There is no way of knowing how long Philza would have stayed rooted in the spot if not for a harsh sound breaking through. </p>
<p>Tommy was yelling from somewhere.  Shouting expletives and warnings.  Phil managed to turn his head to view the world outside the cave.  On the side of the crater stood a group of four.  Tommy and Tubbo stood huddled together.  In front of them stood a man with horns, Philza recognized him as JSchlatt.  A little distance behind Schlatt stood someone Phil didn’t recognize.  It didn’t matter.  The only energy in his body came from single minded focus. </p>
<p>No one else in this family would be hurt today.  He stood.  The pain in his leg was nothing.  He turned and eyed Techno’s form, half crouched beside the broken bed.  The trident forgotten alongside him.  Philza took it in hand, feeling the strum of the enchantments.  They felt cool and warm all at once.  A pleasant sensation.  He jumped into the crater, landing easily in a pool of water at the bottom.  He looked up, pulled back the trident, and flew. </p>
<p>Philza landed roughly on his feet, directly in between the two pairs.  In an instant his trident was up and pointed at JSchlatt’s neck menacingly.  He would give the ram horned man this, he hardly flinched away.  Bravery or foolishness.</p>
<p>Or drunkenness.  The man held a mostly empty bottle in one hand and smelled strongly of alcohol. </p>
<p>“Leave us.  Now.”  Philza was not in the mood for this.  He could remember what this man had done, what he was planning to do.  Phil didn’t wish to enact justice right now, but he would if necessary. </p>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>
<hr/>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>
<p>Tubbo followed Tommy to the edge of what had once been L’Manburg.  The taller boy collapsed to his knees, staring out over the ruins.  Tubbo hadn’t been as attached to the place as Tommy was, but he still fought for it.  He died for it.  And now… now it was gone. </p>
<p>He felt empty. </p>
<p>He laid his hand on Tommy’s shoulder.</p>
<p>He could hear Techno shifting behind them, his armor grating against itself.  For the moment though, Tubbo didn’t care.  The day already felt so long.  That morning they had been safe and content, and now…</p>
<p>Tubbo wasn’t one to get angry easily.  Well scratch that, Tubbo got angry, but he usually got over it.  He would rather make peace then hang onto anger.   When Eret had betrayed them, Tubbo forgave him.  When Technoblade shot him, Tubbo emphasized with him.  When Wilbur mistreated them, Tubbo obeyed him.</p>
<p> But now, now Wilbur had destroyed the whole point of it all.  What was the meaning behind everything they went through if it’s all gone?</p>
<p>He had to lean hard on Tommy’s shoulder to stay standing.  In a flurry of movement Technoblade rushed past them without a word, he leapt into some water and launched himself towards a hole in the stone wall with reckless abandon.  Tubbo didn’t have the energy to ask why.  He didn’t have the energy to move, to fight, to do anything anymore. </p>
<p>When footsteps approached, Tubbo didn’t look up.  He recognized the unsteady footfalls and scent of alcohol.  He stubbornly refused to look anywhere other then down at Tommy by his feet.  Maybe, maybe if he didn’t look it wouldn’t be real.  He knew cognitively that one of the people who plagued his nightmares was standing in front of him, but a deep, tired, part of his consciousness told him if he didn’t acknowledge him, he would just go away.  It didn’t work.</p>
<p>“Well, well, well… Look who we have here?  Looks like we caught ourselves the rebel brat and the fucking traitor.  Tell me, are you two happy with what you’ve done here?  Did you show up to gloat!?”  Schlatt was slurring his words, but he was definitely getting riled up.  When neither boy spared him a glance, he stepped forward aggressively, as if insulted by being ignored.</p>
<p>“Come on Schlatt just…”  A familiar voice tried to intervene.</p>
<p>“Shut up Quackity!”  Suddenly Tubbo felt his head yanked up harshly, involuntary tears sprung to his eyes as Schlatt gripped a handful of his hair and pulled.  Almost immediately the pressure released. </p>
<p>“Hey!  Stop it!!  We didn’t fucking do this you arsehole!”  Tommy had jumped to his feet and pushed Schlatt away.  He was standing in between the horned man and Tubbo.  Despite his bluster Tommy was clearly unsteady on his feet, Tubbo reached out a hand to steady his arm.  Tubbo also readied himself to pull Tommy away if Schlatt escalated, this was not a fight he and Tommy could win. </p>
<p>Tubbo looked up, determined to face Schlatt, and immediately started to feel panic setting in.  The angry, deranged look on the self-proclaimed emperors face was too familiar.  He desperately looked past him, averting his gaze, and instead saw Quackity.  Quackity looked uncomfortable, he winced every time someone yelled, and he swayed as he stood there.  Tubbo was trying so hard to control his breathing that he just stared at the older teen.  Just wanted to look at anything that wasn’t a nightmare come true.</p>
<p>Quackity met his gaze.  His eyes widened with surprise to see Tubbo staring at him, then pooled with unmistakable guilt. </p>
<p>Their stare only lasted a moment.  With a whirl and a thud someone else stood in the middle of everything.  Tubbo was relieved to see Phil, bodily blocking them from Schlatt. </p>
<p>“Leave us.  Now.”  Philza’s voice made Tubbo shiver, something sounded so wrong, hearing such a threatening tone from him.  There was something else there too, the words were clipped as if he was in pain.</p>
<p>Quackity moved forwards to grab Schlatts arm.</p>
<p>“Yeah Schlatt, lets go, we’ve got a lot of work to—”</p>
<p>SMACK</p>
<p>Schlatt turned and backhanded his vice president across the face.  The dark-haired boy stumbled and fell on his back, hand already pressed to his cheek and nose. </p>
<p>“Just sit down on your ass Quackity, it’s all you’ve ever been good for!”  Schlatt turned took a step towards Philza, ignoring the weapon at his throat.  “You must be Philza, I think we’ve met before, briefly.  I wouldn’t have thought you the type to associate with rebels and traitors though.”</p>
<p>“These boys are my sons, and you will leave them alone.  They didn’t do any of this.”</p>
<p>“Oh, didn’t they?  Then who did?”  Tubbo recognized the tone from his time working for Schlatt, he was asking a question he already knew the answer to.  He was baiting Philza for some unknown reason. </p>
<p>“….Wilbur.”  Philza’s voice cracked when saying his son’s name.  Tubbo didn’t understand why until…</p>
<p>“The one you just killed, that Wilbur?”  The world froze.  Tommy had gone stock still, Tubbo didn’t know how to feel.  On one hand, he was glad Wilbur wasn’t an immediate threat, but on the other… The way Philza stood, stiffened, something was wrong.  Really, really, wrong. </p>
<p>“Because if so, then this is easy, lead me to where his spawn is set, and I’ll arrest him!  No harm done!”  Schlatt barreled on.  Tubbo desperately started searching for reassurance, what didn’t he know?  What was happening?  He squeezed Tommy’s arm; his best friend didn’t react.  In fear, Tubbo even tried to look for Quackity, but the older boy was obscured completely by Jschlatt. </p>
<p>“I…”  Philza had lowered his trident, he stuck the end in the ground and leaned on it heavily.  He looked so tired, like he was carrying a huge weight.</p>
<p>“Wilbur is gone.  Now, leave me and my family alone.”</p>
<p>“Phil, Phil what do you mean Wil is gone?”  Tommy grabbed Philza’s shoulder.  Schlatt didn’t even let them have a moment. </p>
<p>“Well then, there’s nothing I can do except arrest the traitors in front of me.  Since Quackity can’t be trusted with simple tasks, I’m going to send a message to my guards.  They’ll be here in a moment.  Don’t go anywhere” Schlatt pulled up his communicator. </p>
<p>Tubbo frantically looked up to Philza for guidance, waiting for him to stop Schlatt or take them away from the danger.  But Philza was frozen, staring at Tommy.  Tommy looked… afraid. </p>
<p>Philza looked helpless.  Tubbo noticed for the first time that he was soaked in blood.</p>
<p>The twang of an arrow setting loose and the wet thud of it impacting drew everyone’s attention. </p>
<p>Schlatt managed only a half turn before poofing out of existence, giving Tubbo, Tommy, and Philza a brief view of the arrow lodged deep in his back.</p>
<p>He vanished, leaving Quackity standing alone, bow held with trembling hands.  He collapsed back to the uneven ground; legs folded under him.  He stared at the bow in his grip with awe, as if unsure of how it got there. </p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <strong>Jschlatt was shot by Quackity</strong>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Philza had crossed the distance in an instant, pressing the tip of the trident to his throat harshly. </p>
<p>“And what, what do you have to gain in this?”  Philza sounded like the words burst out of him, anger and passion needing any outlet. </p>
<p>“I..”  Quackity tipped his head back from the sharp tine, exposing more of his throat, but preventing it from digging in deeper when he spoke.  “I just…”  His dark eyes rose to meet Tubbo’s blue ones.</p>
<p>“I’m sorry Tubbo”</p>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>
<hr/>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>
<p>The harsh point of the trident was removed from Quackity’s throat and the boy dropped his head to his chest.  He felt a trickle of blood down his neck where the tip had lightly pierced the skin, but it wasn’t important.  God his head hurt.</p>
<p>“Listen, those guards Schlatt talked about won’t be coming.  I don’t think he had time to send the message, but even if he did it doesn’t matter.  I already told them to go looking in the opposite direction a bit ago, and that Schlatt was drunk.  Trust me, there’s no lost love between them and that asshat.”  Quackity’s face hurt when he talked, it was really swollen but at least his nose didn’t seem to be broken.  He focused his blurry vison on his hands. </p>
<p>“I get it though, don’t take my word for it.  Uh… here!  You can look at the messages on my communicator.”  Quackity was having trouble seeing straight, but still he pushed himself upwards, hand outstretched with the unfastened communicator.  Someone said something, but it’s all muffled.  Weird.  And the ground is spinning too much to stand.  But he still tried to hand off the communicator, unfortunately he can’t find who he was trying to give it to in the first place.  Everything is so blurry. </p>
<p>He pushed himself to his feet for a fleeting moment before everything fades to black. </p>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>
<hr/>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>
<p>You killed your son.  He was your son.  You killed him.  You murdered him.  You will never see him again.  His smile, his songs, they are lost forever.  You killed Wilbur.</p>
<p>Philza’s mind kept up a steady stream of condemnations and regrets.  He wanted nothing more then to walk away into the woods.  To travel to world spawn so he could leave and return to his own server, his own world.  There were projects that needed doing and maybe there, maybe he could forget.  Pretend that Wil, that all his sons were out there.  That is what Philza wanted to do.  </p>
<p>Philza knew that wasn’t an option. </p>
<p>When Quackity collapsed, Tubbo, followed by Tommy, walked to his side.  Tubbo checked his pulse and moved his head onto a patch of grass, then sat down heavily on the ground.  Tommy followed suit.  Both stared mindlessly out at the land they had once called home. </p>
<p>They needed him. </p>
<p>Techno was still sitting in that cave.</p>
<p>They all needed him.</p>
<p>So Philza forced his mind into a different mode.  He knew it wasn’t healthy to bottle things up inside, he didn’t intend to do so for long, but now he needed to be a caretaker.  He started making a list.</p>
<p>He needed to get the boys somewhere safe.</p>
<p>Quackity was apparently his responsibility now too, so he would need medical attention.</p>
<p>They all needed food.</p>
<p>He needed to get Techno moving, otherwise he would stay there all night drowning in his own regrets.</p>
<p>He needed to tell the boys what happened. </p>
<p>That last one would be the hardest.</p>
<p>Philza was so focused on keeping himself under control that he almost didn’t hear the footsteps rapidly approaching.  When he became aware of them, he acted on instinct alone, swinging his trident up to meet the chest of the newcomer.</p>
<p>“Woah, sorry, I just wanted to see if you all were okay.”  The figure’s voice was deep with a smooth tone, it reminded Philza a little of Technoblade.  Phil did not lower the trident.  He examined the newcomer.  They were tall, easily the tallest person Philza had ever met.  He wore nondescript clothing and, notably, had a delicate crown in his brown hair.  The only other defining feature Phil picked up on was the sunglasses they wore, darkly shaded so his eyes couldn’t be seen.  He had taken a step back when a weapon was pointed his way and held both hands up placatingly.</p>
<p>“Why are you here?”  Philza spoke firmly, he wasn’t in any state for a fight, but this stranger didn’t know that.</p>
<p>“I heard the explosions from my cas… house.  I came to check what had happened.  My name is Eret, you must be Philza.”  The stranger spoke smoothly and calmly for someone being threatened.  “There are probably more people on their way now as well.  I was just closest.  If you don’t want to be bothered, you might want to move.”  Philza was intrigued to note that Eret didn’t seem to care about the destruction around him.  Or rather, it wasn’t his priority.  Eret was looking at the boys behind Phil with concern. </p>
<p>Phil slowly lowered the trident.  Why was the name Eret so familiar?  Philza’s instincts were to trust this person, they seemed like they wanted to help… but… the name sparked a memory.  Something Tommy had written about…</p>
<p>The trident returned to point at Eret’s chest, more aggressively this time.</p>
<p>“You are the one that betrayed them.” </p>
<p>“Yes.  But… that was a long time ago.  I never supported Schlatt and… I’ve been trying to make up for that mistake ever since.”  Eret sounded like he was pleading with Philza, and the tone of regret rang true. </p>
<p>Philza didn’t exactly have a lot of options.  There was no way Tommy and Tubbo were going anywhere without being prodded along, and Quackity didn’t look like he was going to regain consciousness anytime soon.  Philza was also starting to feel how badly his body ached. </p>
<p>“Alright.  I am choosing to trust you Eret.  We need to get back to Badboyhalo and Skeppy’s house.  Do you know where that is?”  Eret nodded solemnly.  “We’ve got a horse somewhere around here, if you can go find it, I’ll get them ready to move.”</p>
<p>Philza pointed Eret in the right direction before kneeling in front of the boys. </p>
<p>“Tommy, Tubbo, we’ve got to go.  People are going to start showing up and asking questions, and we don’t want to get stuck in the middle of it.”  Neither boy looked up, but Tubbo nodded softly and pulled on Tommy’s arm. </p>
<p>“Good job” Philza kept up a steady stream of encouragement.  Tubbo stood up aimlessly and managed to pull Tommy up with him.  They both stood there blankly.  After a moment Tubbo seemed to gain focus and looked meaningfully at Quackity’s still form.</p>
<p>“We will bring him with us if you want.”  Tubbo again gave a small nod, and in barely discernible mumbles spoke.</p>
<p>“Can’t leave m’ with Schlatt.”  Philza had thought the same thing.  Tubbo appeared to have used up the last of his energy on that, and Philza had to help him stay standing.  The footsteps of a horse approached. </p>
<p>“I’ve got it Philza.  How would you like to do this?”  Eret returned holding the reigns. </p>
<p>“You will have to carry Quackity for me.  I’ll get Tommy and Tubbo on the horse and lead it.”  With no more than an affirmative nod Eret moved to Quackity and started gathering him in his arms.  With considerable effort Philza managed to get both boys on the horse.  Tommy sat in front and held the mane with white knuckles, Tubbo sat behind him arms ringed around his waist.  It was nearly evening, both boys looked half asleep. </p>
<p>They started walking. </p>
<p>The journey would have been shorter, but Philza’s leg kept them moving at a crawl.  The older man was impressed by Eret’s endurance though.  He only asked to take a couple breaks to rest his arms from his burden.  They were nearly there when Philza heard a crash behind him. </p>
<p>When he turned, he saw Tubbo laying on the forest floor, clearly confused and disoriented.</p>
<p>“It’s okay Tubbo, you must have fallen asleep and slipped off the horse.” One glance at Tommy revealed that he was also unconscious, but since he was actually in a saddle, he would likely be able to stay on the slow-moving horse. </p>
<p>“Here Tubbo.”  Philza bent down, ignoring the pain, and helped Tubbo climb onto his back.  The smaller boy did so without protest, and Philza again started walking.  Within minutes Tubbo was asleep again, this time head lolling against Phil’s shoulder.</p>
<p>In the silence Philza’s mind started up its cacophony once again.</p>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>
<hr/>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>
<p>Nikki had been waiting for hours.  A while ago she heard an explosion, saw the death messages on the men’s communicator, and cried.  Then the other message came through.  She couldn’t imagine the pain Philza must be in right now, she knew he must have been forced into killing Wilbur.  Schlatt’s death at the hands of Quackity was completely unexpected.  Niki found herself hoping Quackity was okay, he had always done his best to help when Schlatt mistreated and stole from her. </p>
<p>Both of her charges had woken up periodically throughout the afternoon.  Skeppy only woke twice, the first time was spent whining and trying to wake up Bad, presumably to complain to him.  The second time Niki had managed to get Skeppy to drink an entire regen potion, no small feat, since he protested the foul taste vehemently.  By the end of that ordeal she was more than ready for him to pass out again. </p>
<p>Bad on the other hand woke up more then a dozen times, each time started with him trying to get up and move, all the while apologizing profusely in near hysterics.  And each time Niki patiently calmed him down until he was relaxed enough to pass back out. </p>
<p>One thing was the same between the two of them though.  Neither would fall back asleep or even lay down properly until she assured them the other was going to be alright.  It was oddly endearing despite the annoyances. </p>
<p>As dusk approached Niki was beginning to get more and more concerned.  She could hardly stop herself from pacing.  Out to the front door, back to the infirmary.  There was also a part of her fear that was practical.  Wilbur had died for the second time almost an hour ago, he could have respawned and been on his way here at any moment.  Niki couldn’t think of a reason he would do so, but the spike of fear remained every time she heard movement in the yard.   </p>
<p>Finally, her pacing yielded results.  An odd group shuffled into the lights at the front of the house.  Niki rushed out to meet them.  Philza was in the lead, limping heavily.  From a distance his silhouette looked completely wrong, but upon inspection Niki realized he was carrying Tubbo on his back, supporting the teen’s legs with his arms.  The man was also leading a horse, the blond figure riding was obviously Tommy even though shadows obscured his face.  She was incredibly concerned as she approached and realized both boys were unconscious, leaning over limply. </p>
<p>“Philza what do you need, are they alright?”</p>
<p>“They’re not hurt Niki.  They need some rest.”  Philza sounded exhausted in a way Niki couldn’t fully comprehend.  She was about to question him further when—</p>
<p>“Hello Niki.”  Niki’s eyes were filled with tears before she even laid eyes on the tall person following behind.  She rushed to him, ready to wrap her dear friend in a hug, only stopped by his gentle caution.</p>
<p>“Careful, I’ve got Quackity.”  She stopped in front of him instead.</p>
<p>“Eret, oh Eret I’ve missed you so much.  I… so much has happened.”</p>
<p>“I know Niki” Her dear friends voice was deep and soothing as always.  Niki had joined L’Manburg after the original war of independence, and Eret had always been a kind friend.  She knew he had a good heart and wanted to make things right.  Niki was pleased that, even in these dark circumstances, he was finally getting given a chance. </p>
<p>“Let’s get everyone inside.”</p>
<p>With some effort Tubbo was roused enough to walk on his own feet, Tommy was an issue until Tubbo softly called him name.  Tommy was conscious in an instant, or at least awake enough for Niki to help the two of them stumble into their room.  They collapsed on the bed without changing and let themselves be swept back into slumber.</p>
<p>There were only two cots in the infirmary, so Eret had to carry Quackity upstairs to a spare bedroom.  Niki brought up some mild healing potions she had been brewing and some ice.  She carefully treated the contusion to his face and laid some wrapped ice on it to help with the swelling.  Finally, Philza let himself rest.</p>
<p>The three remaining people settled down in the living room.  Niki started to treat Philza’s injuries, despite his protests.  Her verdict was a severe concussion, nasty bruises, and something torn in his leg.  She didn’t know enough to be more specific then that, but she knew how to treat it.  While she was doing so Philza typed on his communicator.  Eventually he stopped and sighed heavily. </p>
<p>“I finally got ahold of Techno, he’s going back to his base for the night.”  Phil explained before Niki could question him. </p>
<p>Niki had just finished bandaging his leg and settled herself down on the nearest couch.  She watched as Phil took several deep breaths, readying himself to speak… Then, the man who Niki had only known as a steady anchor broke down.  Enormous heaving sobs racked his body.  Niki moved close to him and gently rubbed circles on his back.  She looked up at Eret in fear, trying to ask him what had happened with her eyes.  He looked just as lost as she did. </p>
<p>Eventually, a long time later, Philza gathered enough breath to speak.</p>
<p>“Niki, Wil, Wilbur is gone.”</p>
<p>Niki’s hand flew to her mouth to stifle her gasp.  “No…”</p>
<p>“He, in the explosion his spawn point was destroyed.   I…”  Philza was incapable of going on.  Niki’s tears soon joined his own.  As bad as things had gotten, as far as Wil had strayed Niki had still hoped, still believed that he would come back to himself.  That someday, somehow, he was going to be the man she knew as her friend again.  But now….</p>
<p>That was never going to happen.  Niki thought she had run out of tears to cry much earlier that day.  She was wrong. </p>
<p>She knew that whatever she was feeling, Philza, Phil… she couldn’t imagine what he was going through.  Niki didn’t have the first idea how to even begin to comfort him.  So, she just stayed by his side, cried with him, and when he eventually drifted to sleep, she laid a blanket over him. </p>
<p>She settled down on the other couch, where she would be available if anyone woke up during the night.  Eret promised to watch the house and insure they weren’t disturbed by prying eyes. </p>
<p>Everyone was exhausted.  Tomorrow was another day.  Niki slept.</p>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Wow.  So, did that go down how people were expecting?  <br/>They are all so tired.  Poor Philza.  Poor everyone really.</p>
<p>Thank you for all the support and comments!  I love that people are enjoying this story, I've so enjoyed writing it.  <br/>For anyone who might be curious:  The last couple chapters of this are written, hopefully next will be posted on Sunday.  I have started my next story which may or may not be a sequel to this one within the same universe... but it's going to be a couple weeks before I'm ready to start posting that.  In the meantime I have a couple one shots written (one in universe, one just kinda random)  That I will be posting weekly until the new story is ready to start.  <br/>Thanks for reading!<br/>&lt;3--R&amp;T</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0011"><h2>11. Resolutions</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Wilbur is dead.  Nothing will ever be the same.<br/>But there are still things to do, to resolve.</p>
          </blockquote><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Sadness.<br/>CW:  more swearing</p>
<p>TW:  Grief, anxiety, violence, injury, reference to threats of torture, reference to abuse</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p> </p>
<p> </p>
<p>Philza slowly plodded down the quartz stairs with a heavy heart.  He was grateful for Niki as she guided him numbly back to the living room.  Telling Tommy and Tubbo about Wilbur was easily the most difficult thing he had ever done.  The boys had been too in shock the previous day to have a clear recollection of the events.  They had been quietly whispering to each other when he went up that morning, trying to work out what they remembered.  But Tommy and Tubbo, more than anyone, deserved to know exactly what had happened in that little room. </p>
<p>Tubbo seemed stuck in disbelief.  He couldn’t comprehend that Wilbur was gone. </p>
<p>Tommy immediately started lashing out.  He raised his voice at Phil, asking how he could do this.  Philza knew even though his son’s words were directed at him, the anger wasn’t.  The person Tommy was really angry at couldn’t be there.  So, he let his son vent. </p>
<p>Eventually the boys indicated they wanted to be left alone.  Philza left them plates of food and returned to his own grief. </p>
<p>Philza hadn’t seen Techno since the previous day, but he knew the warrior was nearby.  That morning Eret had come in with a small package that Techno gave to him.  Within were three communicators, and they were returned to their owners in short order.  Eret was still outside, standing guard as they had all night.  Philza made a mental note to thank him. </p>
<p>Niki continued to ferry plates of food around the house.  Quackity had woken up that morning and, though still woozy, was well enough to eat.  Bad and Skeppy could be heard bickering periodically, but neither was healed enough to start moving around on their own yet. </p>
<p>Philza rested his head in the palms of his hands, grateful for a moment of peace. </p>
<p>Ping</p>
<p>As Phil looked to his communicator, he saw Niki pause and do the same, also having received a message. </p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <strong>&lt;The_Eret&gt; Guys, there is a big group out here that want to speak to you.  </strong>
</p>
<p>
  <strong>&lt;The_Eret&gt; They claim they just want to talk, if you want to leave, I can buy you some time.</strong>
</p>
<p>
  <strong>&lt;Philza&gt; No Eret, thank you, might as well face this.  I will be out in a moment</strong>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Niki looked to him in shock as he rose to his feet.  “Are you sure?”</p>
<p>“Yes Niki, I would like to avoid any more fighting if possible.  Besides, no one here is in any state to be on the run.”  Niki had to nod at this, it was an accurate assessment. </p>
<p>“Alright, then I’m coming out with you.”  Philza was going to argue, tell her that she was needed in here, but seeing her face he realized there was no point.  She was determined to stand by him in this.  Philza walked to the front door, bracing himself for whatever would be on the other side. </p>
<p>A last thought occurred to him.</p>
<p>“Could you send everyone in the house a message Niki, just let them know what’s going on so they don’t panic when they hear voices.”  With that taken care of, Philza opened the door. </p>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>
<hr/>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>
<p>No one could have been prepared for the odd assortment of individuals gathered on the other side, huddled oddly in the yard.  Fortunately, they weren’t right by the door, Eret seemed to be managing the ruckus, but the tall man wasn’t kidding when he said the group was big.  Philza heard them all quiet down as he approached, their arguing settling into reasonable silence.  Except for one.</p>
<p>“These so-called rebels have destroyed my nation and you want me to stand here and have a fucking chit-chat about it?!”  Schlatt’s aggressive words were directed at an unarmored figure in a bright green hoodie who stood confidently towards the front of the group. </p>
<p>“Yeah, basically.” The male voice didn’t sound remotely put off by Schlatt’s aggression, instead cutting off his next words by turning and addressing Philza.</p>
<p>“Hello Philza, we haven’t met officially, but I’ve heard a lot about you.”  Philza knew immediately why this person didn’t feel the need to introduce himself.  The white mask he wore, adorned with a simple smiley face, was introduction enough. </p>
<p>“And you must be Dream.  It is nice to finally meet the admin on this server.”   Philza noticed now that it wasn’t one large group come to confront them, rather two groups that very clearly didn’t care to be associated with each other.  Dream stepped to the side reveling two more young men behind him, they were heavily armored in stark contrast to Dream himself, whose only visible weapon was a netherite ax hanging on his hip.</p>
<p>“This is Sapnap and that’s George.”  Philza nodded a greeting to each of them.  Sapnap was standing defensively, almost stanced up against the other group.  His face looked serious.  George was hard to tell past his wide rimmed glasses, but he looked more disinterested in the other group.  Frankly, he seemed to be far more interested in watching the house. </p>
<p>“We heard the commotion yesterday and wanted to come check in.  And…”  Dream proceeded smoothly, moving the conversation along.  “As admin I know when someone dies and doesn’t respawn.  We were hoping for an explanation.”  Philza winced at the mention of his son.  This was only natural, an admin has abilities on their server that others don’t, and access to information.  Of course he would come knocking.  It wasn’t a conversation he had been looking forward to, but it was an expected one.</p>
<p>As Phil opened his mouth to answer, he was aggressively interrupted.</p>
<p>“Oh yeah, yeah you all are worried about ‘lover boy’ but I’m here to actually take action on this server!”  When Schlatt took step closer to Philza, Eret stepped in between firmly. </p>
<p>“I don’t think you have jurisdiction here Schlatt.”</p>
<p>“Oh, you using fancy words now huh?  Think if you play nice everyone will forget your mistakes?  It doesn’t matter that this land isn’t Manburg’s!  I will arrest and imprison anyone I see fit, your highness.”  Schlatt’s mocking words made Eret visibly stiffen.  The tall man otherwise kept his composure, replying with impressive grace.</p>
<p>“I don’t think you will be arresting anyone today Schlatt.”</p>
<p>“Try to stop me then!”  Schlatt drew his sword and took a step back, the two guards who were on either side tensed, and drew their weapons with him.  Even Philza could tell they were reluctant, but they were still powerfully armed and armored.  Philza glanced back at the Dream team, they had stepped to the side and were conferring among themselves heatedly.  None of them looked remotely interested in getting in the middle of this fight. </p>
<p>Philza was prepared to push Niki to flee back to the house, when thundering hoofbeats approached.  Without warning an armored horse galloped into the midst of the building tension, coming to a halt mere feet in front of Schlatt and his men. </p>
<p>Technoblade dismounted gracefully.  The warrior was armed to the teeth, and casually pushed Eret aside.  Eret gratefully backed up to stand with Philza. </p>
<p>“Ponk, Purpled, I don’t think either of you want this fight.”  Techno’s voice was horse and raspier than usual. </p>
<p>Schlatt’s guards looked at each other nervously</p>
<p>The air crackled with violent energy.</p>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>
<hr/>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Guys don’t worry about that pig, listen the Dream team will help us out, won’t you fellas?”  Schlatt was scheming again.  Niki hated his tone, hated that she was afraid he would get what he wanted.</p>
<p>“Why would we do that?”  Dream had returned to the situation, apparently unfazed by Technoblade’s sudden arrival.  “You don’t exactly have anything to bargain with anymore.”</p>
<p>“An appeal to your better nature then, these criminals have kidnapped my vice president!  My right hand man!  I mean Quackity, he’s just a kid, and here they are holding him hostage doing who knows what to him!”  Niki watched horrified as Schlatt put on a show.  He was surprisingly convincing, his feigned concern and real anger mixed into a believable facsimile of care.  Niki knew it wasn’t true, Eret and Philza had explained his presence the previous night, but as she stared at the Dream team, Niki was afraid they wouldn’t be as discerning. </p>
<p>“Okay but, didn’t he like, kill you just last night?”  George was the one to question the ram-horned man’s statements. </p>
<p>“He was forced to!  They made him do it!  They were going to hurt him if he didn’t and I, I told him it would be better to just kill me.  I couldn’t see him hurt.”  Schlatt was scrambling for an explanation, the man was a performer, Niki couldn’t deny that.</p>
<p>After a moment of contemplation, Dream turned slowly towards Technoblade and the rest.  The hooded man was inscrutable under his mask, but his hand moved to rest on the handle of his ax.  His team mimicked his action with their own weapons. </p>
<p>“Is this true?”</p>
<p>Niki felt Philza shift beside her, preparing to answer the accusations.  She looked horrified at Schlatt’s smug expression; in a battle of words he was confident. </p>
<p>“What happened last—”</p>
<p>“No, it’s not fucking true!!”  Niki spun hearing the shout ring out from the house.  Quackity stood in the doorway, one hand supporting himself on the wall as he swayed dizzily.  He looked terrified at the sudden attention when everyone turned their eyes towards him, but he continued anyway.</p>
<p>“I killed him myself, of my own free fucking will and I would do it again, right now if I could!”</p>
<p>“Quackity…”  Schlatts tone was suddenly dark, threatening.  “Quackity shut up and get over here.”</p>
<p>“No!  You know what, I’m doing what I should’ve done a long time ago, telling everyone how much of an absolute asshole you are!”  Quackity was striding towards the group across the yard now, pushing past Niki until he stood directly in the middle of the gathering.  Niki watched Purpled and Ponk lower their weapons when he approached.  Purpled’s mouth opened in shock as seeing the black eye and bruises marring Quackity’s face, Ponk spoke up for both of them.</p>
<p>“Quackity, man, what happened?”</p>
<p>“Oh this?  Schlatt did this when he thought I was getting too out of line, not wanting him to arrest some innocents, while he was drunk off his ass!”  Ponk and Purpled recoiled and put physical distance between them and the ram hybrid.  Schlatt was fuming dangerously. </p>
<p>“Or how about this one?  Schlatt ever tell anyone about the festival, ya know, his little fucking execution event?  How it was planned the whole time?  Schlatt never cared about democracy or L’Manburg, he only cared about his power and money and having absolute fucking control over everything!” </p>
<p>“Manburg” Schlatt’s voice had deadly undertones that made Niki step back reflexively.  But Quackity had momentum, he wasn’t going to be stopped now.</p>
<p>“Or the best part of the whole thing, this man gets drunk to high heaven weeks later and starts bragging about how he made Techno do it.  He’s so fucking proud of himself, thinking he must be some shit for getting the strongest guy on the server to obey him.  You know how he did it?  Do any of you even know?” </p>
<p>Schlatts eyes were shooting daggers as his vice president.  “Shut up now Quackity!”</p>
<p>“Oh, you would like that wouldn’t you, if I didn’t tell them about how you planned—” </p>
<p>Schlatt lunged forward with his sword extended, Niki watched it happen in seemingly slow motion.  The sudden fear on Quackity’s face, the anger written across Schlatt’s, the sword moving straight towards the younger man’s chest, a scream of fear.</p>
<p>Niki didn’t realize she had shut her eyes until there was nothing but silence.  She opened them fearfully, dreading what she would see…</p>
<p>Her eyes found Quackity, sitting on the grass.  She searched him for blood and injury, relieved to find none.  He was breathing heavily but appeared unhurt.  She traced her eyes upward following the line of a person standing where Schlatt had been moments before.  Enchanted armor gleamed in the sunlight as the figure looked over their shoulder at Quackity ruefully. </p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <strong>Jschlatt was slain by Sapnap</strong>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Really Sapnap, you couldn’t have just stopped him?”  The British voice of George rang out with mock indignation.</p>
<p>“What?  Dude was going psycho on us!  Besides, does anyone here actually care that I killed him?”  A quick survey of the group showed reactions ranging from shaking heads, to uninterested shrugs.  Even Ponk and Purpled, the man’s guards, didn’t seem to care anymore.  They both helped Quackity up off the ground and found him a place to sit on the edge of the path, then seated themselves either side of him.  The three started having a hushed conversation.  Dream was the last to respond to his friend’s question. </p>
<p>“I really shouldn’t advocate it… but…”  Dream looked down and shook his head slowly “I was about to do it myself; Sap just beat me to it.” </p>
<p>Sapnap grinned before sheathing his sword and tightening the white band tied around his head. </p>
<p>“There, it’s settled, can we have a real conversation now?” </p>
<p>“I would like to hear what it was Schlatt was so eager to stop Quackity from telling us.”  Dream looked serious once again, but the tension in the air had lightened significantly. </p>
<p>“If we are going to have a talk, we should do it inside.  Quackity still needs to rest and Philza, you shouldn’t be standing on that leg for this long.”  Niki wasn’t accepting arguments this time.  She led the way into the house and got everyone seated around the table and on the couches. </p>
<p>“Alright, where should we start?”</p>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>
<hr/>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>
<p>The conversation was long and grueling.  There was a lot to explain, and everyone had different pieces of the story.  For his part Dream remained passive, unreadable under the mask, but following along silently.  Philza was grateful for the younger man’s demeanor.  The rest of the group interjected as needed.  Philza noticed George dozing off on the couch at some point, but he didn’t have anything to add so no one objected. </p>
<p>When the festival had to be discussed, Quackity was still too shaken to go over events.  So Philza volunteered Techno to explain, with him helping along.  When they explained what Schlatt had threatened Technoblade with the room stilled.  For the first time since the conversation started Philza could read emotion on the masked man, his hands tightened on the table and his leg started to tap a furious rhythm.  Sapnap seemed to express what Dream was feeling for him.</p>
<p>“What the hell?  He was going to fucking torture him!”  Those involved could only nod.  Even Bad, who had moved into the room to join the talks, only muttered a smothered ‘language’ under his breath. </p>
<p>Philza went on to explain his involvement, how he had learned about Wilbur’s fall from grace.  Naturally, he didn’t speak about anything Tommy and Tubbo had gone through to the group, that was their information.  He kept things about Pogtopia brief, and focused on describing Wilbur’s plans for destruction.</p>
<p>He explained most of the events of the previous day.  Wilbur attacking Skeppy and Badboyhalo in an attempt to bring back Tommy and Tubbo.  The race to try to stop him.  What happened after L’Manburg was blown up and how Quackity stepped in. </p>
<p>After half an hour, the group was mostly caught up on events.  One thing still needed to be explained though. </p>
<p>“I’m sorry to ask this, but what happened with Wilbur?”  The question hung heavily in the room.  Most people there could only look on with questions in their eyes, no one knew what had taken place in that cave. </p>
<p>Except Philza. </p>
<p>So, for the second time that day, Philza recounted the worst event of his life. </p>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>
<hr/>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>
<p>Dream had heard enough.  His admin powers had a limited scope, generally Dream tried to use them as little as possible.  But for this he would make an exception. </p>
<p>“Alright.  There are enough of us here that I feel comfortable making some decisions.  Does anyone object to that?”  Dream looked carefully around the room, trying to scope out any concerns.  He wanted to make sure everyone was in agreement.  Philza raised his hand.</p>
<p>“If we are making plans then Tommy and Tubbo should be involved.  They deserve a say.”  There was a murmur of agreement that cycled around the room.  Dream nodded.</p>
<p>“Also, I know Skeppy is listening from the other room, but can someone help him move in here?”  Sapnap hopped to his feet and nodded, on his way to help their injured friend.  In the process he knocked George to the floor, who had been leaning against him sleeping.  Dream couldn’t help but laugh at the shocked look on his friend's face. </p>
<p>“Everyone, before I go get the boys, I need you all to listen up.”  Philza had stood and gathered the groups attention.   “I’m going to ask them if they want to come down and join in.  If they decide to, then I need you all to respect some boundaries.   Don’t approach them or overwhelm them, they’ve been through a lot.  Let them sit down over there and don’t pester them with questions.  And no weapons.  Can we agree?”  Dream agreed and watched as Philza pulled a couple chairs off to the side.  Near the table but not in the middle of everyone. </p>
<p>Dream has trained his senses a lot over the years, doing manhunts with his friends especially has raised his awareness of things happening around him.  So, he is the first to hear the light footfalls coming down the stairs.  Tommy and Tubbo cautiously proceed into the room, wary eyes taking in everyone. </p>
<p>“Hey bitches we heard you talking shit and thought you might need some big men to settle this issue.”  Tommy was clearly trying to put on a swagger of confidence when they entered, but his whole body was tensed and ready for anything.  Dream noticed Techno leaving the room quietly. </p>
<p>For a moment everyone seemed afraid to respond, as if worried they would do something wrong.</p>
<p>“Language!”  Bad broke the silence with his indignant yelp and the room breathed again.</p>
<p>“Were you two listening by the stairs the whole time?”  George sounded amused. </p>
<p>“What if we were Bitch Boy?” </p>
<p>“Language!!”  Everyone laughed at Bad’s vexation as the two boys made their way over to their chairs. </p>
<p>“Okay, everyone.”  Dream managed to wrangle the room back into a semblance of order.</p>
<p>“The big thing to deal with is what to do about Schlatt.”  The nice thing about wearing a mask was that Dream could watch for reactions without anyone being made uncomfortable by his staring.  So, as he said the name Dream watched a couple faces.  Tubbo flinched visibly, but Tommy was right there providing a calming presence.  Quackity scowled, but there was an undertone of fear that Dream picked up on.  Ponk must have as well, because the other man bumped his shoulder reassuringly. </p>
<p>“I have some options.  The thing is, Jschlatt is technically the rightfully elected president of L’Manburg.  I don’t want to step in beyond my authority.  But, if an agreement is made to depose him, by the people of L’Manburg, then I will use my power to put it into effect.”  Dream had given L’Manburg their independence, he wanted to make sure this was all above board.  The room erupted into group chattering about his statements, so he just waited.  Eventually they would calm down. </p>
<p>“Does anyone in L’Manburg even support Schlatt anymore?”  Philza threw the question out into the room.</p>
<p>“Maybe Fundy…”  Niki offered</p>
<p>“No.”  Eret stood and interjected.  “Fundy confided in me that he doesn’t support Schlatt’s administration at all.”</p>
<p>“Punz?”  Sapnap looked pointedly at Ponk and Purpled when suggesting the name.</p>
<p>“Ha nope, Punz was so pissed at Schlatt that he refused to even come out here today.  Schlatt chewed him out for not being there fast enough after a respawn or something.”  Ponk spoke up into the cacophony. </p>
<p>“Okay, so here’s what I suggest.  If the people of L’Manburg would like to vote to kick Schlatt out of their country, then we can do it now.  After that he would default to a member of my server or choose to exile himself.  Either way I will make sure he never has a chance to hurt anyone here again.”</p>
<p>“What do you intend to do Dream?”  Philza looked up at Dream’s face with venom in his eyes.</p>
<p>“I know no punishment can fit the things he’s done and caused here.  But I plan to permanently ban him from this server.”  This wasn’t something Dream would choose to do lightly.  Banning someone wasn’t the same as just sending them far away with a promise to never return, it was forcefully removing them from the world entirely.  Dream had heard it’s an incredibly painful process, as you are unwillingly ejected from the plane of existence.  Trying to return to a server you were banned on is a death sentence.  If you attempt to go through the portal you will die, no questions about it. </p>
<p>Dream didn’t know where Schlatt had come from, if he had a home out there on another world, but if he didn’t… Hanging out between worlds waiting for a new one to form for you is agonizing.  It’s fine if you have a server to be on in the meantime while it happens but… if you don’t… it’s a long wait in a lonely void. </p>
<p>“So, lets put it to a vote then!”  Quackity clapped his hands together.  “To make this fair only L’Manburg citizens can vote, right Dream?”  Dream nodded.</p>
<p>“Great, then we’ve got a vast majority of them here.  Dream, will you keep count of the vote for us?  Great, then let’s get started.”</p>
<p>The voting began.</p>
<p>The results were unanimous.</p>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>
<hr/>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>
<p>Niki hummed happily as she cleaned out the remains of her old bakery.  Eret was helping with the reconstruction efforts, and she was more then happy for the company.  It helped her feel more safe, more comfortable. </p>
<p>“Niki!”  A youthful voice called out from the entrance.  She turned to smile at Quackity.  He had more energy now, and he would need it.  Along with deciding to ban Jschlatt, L’Manburg had decided he would be president in his stead.  She eyed his face critically, his bruises were still healing, but he looked much better than even a day ago.</p>
<p>“Did you hear?  Dream says he will be ready to ban the biggest asshole this country has ever seen in less than a day!”  Several people had taken to not referring to Schlatt by name, and it amused Niki to no end how aggressively Quackity danced around it.  She was sure he partially did it for her benefit anyway, so she didn’t try to hide the small giggle that bubbled up. </p>
<p>“Good!  Can’t be soon enough.”  It takes a bit of effort to ban someone, unfortunately the sentence couldn’t be carried out immediately.  Although… there was someone who seemed to appreciate the extra time.  Niki glanced at her communicator.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <strong>Jschlatt was slain by Philza</strong>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>No one seemed to mind the bit of justice Phil was carrying out on his own accord.  Niki sighed as she wiped down the surviving front counter, that man could be terrifying when he felt like it.</p>
<p>“Can I help with anything?  Ya know, since I’m here.”  Niki startled to realize Quackity was still hanging in the entryway.  He gave her a sheepish smile, tugging the edge of his beanie. </p>
<p>“Sure Quackity, I’m wanting to set up a medical center here too now, you could start clearing out that other cave if you’d like.”  He jumped into action with an enthusiastic nod. </p>
<p>“Whatever you say, vice presidente!”  Niki smiled. </p>
<p>Maybe things would be okay after all. </p>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>
<hr/>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>
<p>Tommy and Tubbo sat on their bench while the calming music of Cat flowed over them.  Sitting here, days later, Tommy waited expectantly.  He glanced over at Tubbo, who was staring anxiously at his own communicator.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <strong>Jschlatt was banned from the server</strong>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>There it was.  It was over, this whole thing was finally over.  It had taken Dream a couple days to set things up for Schlatt to get banned, apparently it’s not as easy as pushing a button, but it finally happened.  He was gone from here.  Tommy looked at Tubbo again and bumped his shoulder when he saw his best friend’s eyes were filled with tears. </p>
<p>“No more sneaking around Tommy, no more worrying that I’ll run into him somewhere, he’s gone.”  Tubbo’s voice was weepy, but Tommy chose not to call him out on it.  Rather he just scooted closer to his friend. </p>
<p>“Yeah.”  Tommy looked up as the sun started to fall over the horizon.  Even sitting here, on his bench, with his best friend, there was still a pain in his chest he couldn’t ignore.  It was like someone carved out a piece of his heart and left the hole empty.  He couldn’t help but think about Wilbur.  He didn’t mean to say anything, but it just slipped out.</p>
<p>“Sometimes, Tubbo, sometimes I think I’m going to see Wil around ya know?  It’s like, I know he’s gone, and if he wasn’t, I wouldn’t really want to see him, but… I still miss him.  Is that wrong of me Tubbo?  After all he did, after everything he did to you, is it wrong of me to miss him?”  Tommy didn’t realize he was crying until Tubbo had wrapped his arms around his waist. </p>
<p>“No Tommy.  I think it makes sense to miss him.  He wasn’t my brother but… I miss him too.  Especially how he used to be.”  Tommy sniffled as Tubbo spoke.  He wanted to stop there, to be a big man and stop crying, but here on his bench, with Tubbo, the words just kept coming. </p>
<p>“I still always thought, I always believed that if I just stuck by him, I could convince him.  I could bring him back and he’d just be Wil again.  That if we got L’Manburg back it would fix him!  I know it wouldn’t have worked but… I wanted it to be true so bad.  Now that will never happen.  Wilbur is gone.  He left me and… Dammit Tubbo I just miss him so much it hurts.”  Tommy had to stop talking for a while, choked out by his sobs.  Eventually he turned and hugged Tubbo back, crying into his shoulder. </p>
<p>“I’m gonna get your shirt all wet big man.”  Tommy eventually composed himself enough to sit up again, watching the setting sun.  Tubbo still was hugging him though. </p>
<p>“Clingy”</p>
<p>“Oh, shut it Tommy.”  They sat in comfortable silence until Tubbo spoke up again.</p>
<p>“So, what do you want to do now Tommy?”</p>
<p>That was a big question.  They, they had the freedom to do whatever they wanted, and Tommy wasn’t sure what that was. </p>
<p>“Well Philza said he will help us do whatever we want right?  So, we’ve gotta decide where we are going to live, I don’t think I can stay with the troll and Mr. language much longer.”</p>
<p>Tubbo snorted before answering.</p>
<p>“I don’t know if I want to go back to L’Manburg… Even with Big Q in charge now… there’s just so many…”</p>
<p>“Too many bad memories.”  Tommy finished the thought for him.  “I agree Tubbo.  Maybe sometime we can go back, but not yet.”  Both boys nodded.  Tommy was pleased when Tubbo relaxed, clearly relieved to have that option removed.</p>
<p>“What about building a new place somewhere else?”  Tubbo offered the suggestion quietly.  “You know, somewhere big enough for us and Phil and… well… maybe Techno if you wanted him there Tommy.  We could have a railway and bees and everything!”  Tommy started to smile at the thought despite himself.</p>
<p>“Yeah big man, we could even build it out near my summer home!  Then we wouldn’t be too far away from Niki and anyone else who we wanted to visit.”</p>
<p>“Or mug!”  The boys grinned at each other.  Tommy’s grin slowly faded as he thought about something Tubbo had said.  He turned to his friend, catching his eyes seriously.</p>
<p>“Tubbo, would you really be okay with Techno being there?  Nothing says he has to be part of our big plans after all.”  As Tommy watched, Tubbo got a faraway look in his eyes.  He seemed to be carefully considering the question.  Normally Tommy would have rushed a response, but he made himself wait.  Finally, Tubbo spoke up.</p>
<p>“I think, well, it might not be okay at first but, eventually… If we had enough space and stuff, and if Techno was willing to, ya know, be slow and patient and listen… I think I would like to have him there.  I know… I know you miss him too Tommy.”  Tubbo was right.  Tommy missed his brother.  Even though him and Technoblade had never been extremely close, they were still brothers, and Tommy’s anger towards him was rapidly fading now. </p>
<p>“Besides… I know… I know he really didn’t want to hurt me.  After learning what… what Schlatt…”  Tubbo didn’t have to finish the sentence.  Tommy grabbed his hand reassuringly, in their calming signal.  Breathe, you’re safe.  Tommy couldn’t remember a time he was ever angrier than listening on the quartz stairs while Technoblade and Philza explained what Schlatt had planned to do to Tubbo if Techno hadn’t killed him.  A lot of Tommy’s persisting anger at Technoblade had died at that moment.  Since then he had even felt moments of gratitude towards his brother, especially when he noticed Techno following them from a distance protectively while Schlatt was still on the server.  Tommy liked to think he was a big man who didn’t want anyone to protect him, but, having his warrior brother watching over him did add a feeling of safely.</p>
<p>“If you’re sure you’re okay with it Tubbo.”  The smaller boy nodded.  They shared a brief smile. </p>
<p>“Alright Big T, what are we going to build first for this house?”</p>
<p>“Well I want to build a garden so I can catch some bees and you should build a path to get there!”</p>
<p>“Shouldn’t one of us work on the actual house Tubbo?”</p>
<p>“Tommy, I’ve seen your intimidation tower, you are not allowed to build our house.”</p>
<p>“What!?!  My intimidation tower is a work of art!” </p>
<p>The two boys discussed their plans on that hillside, and even in the distance their arguments and laughter could be heard ringing through the air.    </p>
<p>They laughed and fought and listened to their music discs until long after the sun had slipped below the horizon. </p>
<p>Everyone who heard them couldn’t help but smile.  They were together.  They were safe.</p>
<p>They were home at last. </p>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>There it is.  That is the last true chapter of this story arc.  <br/>I have a short "epilogue" that I will post shortly.  It will also hint at the next story-line in this universe.  <br/>I hope you've enjoyed this story, I've so enjoyed writing it.<br/>If you are interested, I've got an in universe one-shot I plan to post next weekend, so keep an eye out for that.  <br/>Anyways, thanks for reading<br/>--R&amp;T</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0012"><h2>12. Epilogue: The Watcher</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Time goes on.<br/>Someone watches.</p>
          </blockquote><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Just an little epilogue, or maybe a prologue for my next story.<br/>Either way, no trigger warnings for this one.</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p> </p><p> </p><p>Someone drifted through the house on the coast.  They didn’t know who they were, or why they were there, so they did the only thing they could.  They watched.</p><p>They watched a family of four settling into life in this home.</p><p>The smallest, with brown hair and an abundance of life flitted around the place.  The Watcher called him ‘Bee boy’.  A fitting moniker since he buzzed around and spent a large amount of time in his garden. </p><p>The tallest was blond, but though tall, he clearly was just as young as bee boy.  The Watcher called him ‘the Angry Child’ because no matter what was happening, he seemed to find something to argue about. </p><p>The next was a hybrid, with tusks that rose unobtrusively from his lower jaw.  The watcher called him ‘the Warrior’.  He seemed strong and protective, often spending his time training in the yard.  Amusingly to the Watcher, the Warrior also spent an unreasonable amount of time farming nothing but potatoes in a huge pasture. </p><p>Today the Watcher was looking in on the living room, observing the three boys in their antics.  The two youngest had been fighting over some sort of redstone device, squabbling and wrestling in equal measures.  The Warrior had stayed sitting on a couch while they fought, and though it was difficult for the Watcher to hear things, they knew the Warrior was occasionally making remarks by watching his mouth move.  The family looked happy.  It filled the Watcher with a sense of longing they didn’t know they were capable of. </p><p>While they were watching, the Warrior stood, turning to leave the room.  Before he could do so, Bee boy flew out of nowhere and tackled him from behind.  Even the Watcher froze.  In all their time spent observing the family, the Watcher had never seen Bee boy and the Warrior have any physical contact.  The two always stayed a distance apart and the Warrior never, ever approached the smaller boy.  There was a moment of tension, then the Warrior fell dramatically to the floor.  Even with their limited abilities the Watcher could hear laughter as the wrestling and play continued.  Angry Child tried to throw a blanket over the warrior, presumably to subdue him.  Unfortunately, the Warrior was too cany for that, and in a feat of agility, tossed the Angry Child over his shoulder like a sack of potatoes.  Bee boy collapsed on the ground laughing at the sight of his brother dangling, annoyed, from the Warrior’s arms.</p><p>Thus defeated, the Angry Child was dumped unceremoniously on the couch.  The Warrior sat on the other end of it, whatever he was leaving for long forgotten.  Bee boy had reclaimed his gadget at some point and leapt onto the couch between them.  He proudly showed the Warrior his invention.  The Warrior’s eyes were wide as the small brunette sat close by his side.  He looked a little afraid to move, but beyond pleased.  Even the Angry Child seemed to be content to enjoy the moment. </p><p>The Watcher noticed as the door to the house opened and the fourth member of the family entered.  As he walked into the living room, he paused, taking in the scene of all three boys sitting together on the couch.  The Watcher thought they noticed small tears in his eyes, quickly blinked away.  When the oldest man called out a greeting, the boys responded.  And even though the Watcher knew they couldn’t be heard, that they wouldn’t be seen, they still returned the greeting.</p><p>The Watcher greeted the man dressed in green by the title they instinctively knew was his, the only thing in this world they knew for certain. </p><p>“Hi, dad”</p><p> </p><p> </p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Huh, wonder who the Watcher is ;)<br/>Here is the promised epilogue, and the final chapter of this arc.<br/>I may or may not have over 15k words of the next story written... so there is that.<br/>This wasn't originally supposed to be a series, but I got inspired, so now it will be!<br/>I have a one-shot to post this week, and hopefully will get enough edited of the new story to start posting next week.  </p><p>For anyone who has read this far, question for you.<br/>Do people prefer frequent shorter updates (every other day but only 2k ish words)  or less frequent larger updates (weekly or biweekly but 4k words or so)?<br/>I haven't done all the chapter divisions yet for the next story and just am curious what people enjoy.<br/>I also can do it purely based on story flow, but then the chapters could vary in length by a lot.  </p><p>Thank you for reading, I hope you have enjoyed this story!!<br/>I appreciate you all!<br/>&lt;3-- R&amp;T</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
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